Another Side, Another Story
by blindbat1192
Summary: Spinoff of my Rugrats/AGU fanfic 'The Unraveling'. Title comes from Kingdom Hearts, and is told from Trixie's point of view both before and during/after The Unraveling. To most people, Gemini Labs is the big bad. But to Dimmsdale, Gemini Labs is just paving the way for an even greater threat, one that will change the world as we know it.
1. A Strange Reunion

**For those of you who read my Rugrats/AGU fanfic, 'The Unraveling', this is a spin-off of sorts, albeit with a lot more magic (given the nature of FOP). Just keep that in mind as you read on. Also, the first scene at the pool is actually from one episode of FOP, but doesn't play the same afterwards (for one thing, Poof was born much later in the series even though I placed him in the story). I felt this was a good place to start FOP's side of the story. You'll see why as the story progresses.**

* * *

><p><span><strong>Part I: Attack<strong>

A socially awkward boy stood atop the monstrous diving board looming over the community pool. At the bottom were four rich, popular kids from his school. One of them was his lifetime crush, Trixie Tang, the raven-haired Asian standing to the side. The other girl, blonde with a star-shaped hair pin, was Veronica, who secretly crushes on Timmy (which had been discovered through magical means). And next to them were two boys teasing Timmy. Tad and Chad, dressed in the same preppy purple outfits, but one was white and the other black.

"Whatsa matter, Turner?" asked Tad mockingly, "Poor _and_ scared?"

"Of course I'm not scared!" exclaimed the buck-toothed 10-year-old, "And I'm not _poor_ either! I'm middle class!"

"Gee, thanks for rubbing that in, Timmy!" exclaimed Chester while munching down sweets.

Chester (the blonde with the braces) and A.J (the genius with the oversized bald head), Timmy's two best friends, watched as he made the plunge towards the water. The good news was that he made the dive just fine. The bad news was that when Timmy emerged from the pool, his swim trunks were nowhere to be found. And that resulted in the merciless laughter of all the kids around him, even his best friends.

And watching from a distance through a highly advanced telescope was a shady duo lurking from the hilltops, one older and one younger. Though they could see what transpired at the community pool, they were hidden by shadows, even to the creepy crawlies that inhabited the nearby garbage bins.

"Aren't you a little old to be getting kicks out of kids in bathing suits?" asked the younger one.

"I'm not 'getting kicks' as you like to put it," the older man replied, adjusting the sights on his scope, "I'm getting a good look at one of our targets."

"Earth to old guy," the young one said, "The target is Trixie Tang! You're just watching that buck-toothed kid!"

"That buck-toothed kid," said the older one, "is what we want. He's the key to knocking the Tangs down a notch."

"That a fact?" asked the younger one, "Well, who'd have thought someone like that could put those assclowns where they belong?"

"'Someone like that'? I don't think you know what that boy can do if he so pleases..."

* * *

><p>It didn't take long for Trixie Tang to arrive home from the pool. It never did when you rode around in a limousine. After exiting the limousine, Trixie walked up to her front porch and opened the double front door, where her mother, a petite Chinese woman with a pointed jaw and her hair in a traditional bun, had been lying in wait on the purple love seat nearby.<p>

"There you are!" Beatrix exclaimed, "We're going to be late!"

"For what?" asked Trixie, setting down her purse on the polished end table.

"How many times do we need to go over this?" Beatrix asked her, "Your father and his colleagues are expected to be at a very important event, and the event's organizers insisted on having them bring their families."

Beatrix continued to talk on while walking with her daughter upstairs to Trixie's bedroom.

"Besides, you know how important family functions are to your father," said Beatrix.

"Are they?" asked Trixie, "Because last time I checked, work was all Dad cared about. And what do you mean, 'family function'? Aren't we the only ones in our family going there?"

"Not quite," replied Beatrix, who at this point was already in Trixie's room...and her wardrobe, picking out a dress for her daughter. "Your Uncle Ramsey is going to be there as well. So will his son."

Trixie grabbed the red, sleeveless dress her mother had ignored and began to put it on. "What are Uncle Ramsey and Cousin Talbot doing at this kind of event? They never even talk to us."

"Only because Ramsey and your father haven't gotten along very well over the years," added Beatrix, helping her daughter zip the back of her dress, "But that could change tonight. It was Ramsey who invited your father's company to the event to begin with."

"Why?"

"Who knows," replied Beatrix, "I just hope those two can stop bickering and maybe we can be a functional family again."

Trixie pulled out one of her dozens of glitter-covered high heels and placed them on her feet.

"But why do I have to go with you guys? Isn't this an adult event?"

"Mainly, yes," replied Beatrix, "But if it makes you feel better, your friend Veronica will be there with her parents as well. I'm sure you two can find a way to entertain yourselves."

"Honey, I'm home!" Mr. Tang called from downstairs, "And I'm ready to leave when you are!"

"We're ready now!" called Beatrix from up the stairs.

Beatrix turned to her daughter one more time before they went to meet Mr. Tang downstairs.

"Just _try_ to help your father out tonight," said Beatrix, "It might be boring for you, but I promise it'll be over before you know it."

* * *

><p>The large reception hall at the Dimmsdale Community Center held around 300 of the community's finest movers and shakers, including the Tangs. Just for the guests, the floors were covered with red carpet and a long line of buffet tables with the richest pastries were laid out. Sure enough, Trixie and Veronica found each other and were chatting away before long. Beatrix and her husband were close by, sitting at one of the tables.<p>

"At least she's not complaining about being surrounded by grown-ups," said Beatrix.

A voice from behind the pair said "Which is more than I can say for a certain favorite son."

When Beatrix and her husband turned around, there stood Ramsey and Talbot. Ramsey was younger than his brother, but still had equally gray hairs, and had a full beard on his face. He still shared the same eyes and nose as his brother, but not his short, plump figure. No, Ramsey was taller and more solid. His son Talbot, only 16 years old, had his father's long thin face, but completely clean shaven. He didn't have his father's eyes, though. Talbot's eyes were much more piercing and focused with a bright aura of beige. And he was exactly the same size as Mr. Tang, but skinny.

"Jeffrey," said Ramsey.

"Ramsey," replied Jeffrey.

"It's, uh, nice to see you two again," said Beatrix.

"I didn't believe you when you said that nearly _five_ years ago," said Ramsey grumpily, "And I doubt you mean that now."

"Do we have to do this here?" asked Jeffrey, "Unless that's what you invited us here for. To point out how long it's been since we've seen each other."

"Actually, as a businessman," said Ramsey, "I thought you might appreciate the opportunity my employers are prepared to offer your company...and your community."

"Who _is_ your employer, anyway?" asked Jeffrey.

"That would be him," replied Ramsey, pointing to the tall, clean shaven, brown haired man walking across the stage on which the main speakers would be presented, "Dr. Alexander Ortiz. He's one of the lead scientists at Gemini Labs where I work. I myself take the data he gathers and organizes it into nice colorful charts that would make a child take an interest in biochemistry."

"Biochemistry?" Jeffrey and Beatrix asked simultaneously.

"That's Gemini Labs' primary field of expertise," replied Talbot, "And you wouldn't believe how much more I know about the subject than I would care to thanks to this job."

That got a few chuckles out of the adults, and Beatrix was glad Talbot was there. Whether it was his ability to neutralize a tense situation, or his calm voice and demeanor, it was good of Talbot to smooth things over between the two estranged brothers. And while Talbot's efforts redirected the conversation to more trivial things like raising a kid and the stress of a normal work day, Trixie and Veronica were off in their own little world, mainly consisting of the school's system of hierarchy.

"Anyway, I don't know what Tad and Chad have to worry about," said Trixie, sharpening her nails, "The election for student body president(s) isn't until the end of the week, and no one even dares to run against them."

"Actually, that's not true anymore," said Veronica, doing exactly the same thing as Trixie due to her obsession with being her, "I heard that the regulars have, like, an upcoming candidate to run against them. He's not going to win, obviously, but the regulars still seem to like the guy."

"What's his name, anyway?" asked Trixie.

"Who knows?" asked Veronica, "Tad and Chad are total shoe-ins for the presidency, so I don't even bother to keep up with the election news."

Before the conversation could go any further, the lights were dimmed, and a voice over the intercom prepared to introduce the evening's guests.

"Welcome to the 35th Annual Event for Business Leaders of Dimmsdale. Presenting tonight's main speaker, from our newest sponsor, Gemini Labs...Dr. Alexander Ortiz!"

The adults in the room began to clap their hands together, a few of them even whistled, but the few children that were brought to the event were either in their own little worlds, or silent during Ortiz's brief speech.

"I feel like you and I...Dimmsdale and Gemini Labs...are going to get along greatly. After speaking with the mayor and a few of the city's most prominent citizens, I believe your pleasant town is a perfect match for Gemini Labs and what we seek to accomplish. I see many of you in here who have already contributed towards the implementation of our research throughout the community, and I can't thank you enough for that, but I would also like to invite those of you in here that I am _not_ familiar with to look further into our goals and, perhaps, join us in our journey towards greatness."

The brief but powerful speech was met with even more applause, which Ramsey wasted no time gloating about to his brother.

"And _that_ is the success story I'm proud to be part of," said Ramsey, placing an arm around his much older brother, "And it was through my own means, too. Not the luck of a winning lotto ticket or subsequent investments towards big brand corporations."

"Are we really going to get into this again?" asked an agitated Jeffrey.

"Just thought I'd brag a little," replied Ramsey, "It's not every day _I_ get to brag to _you_ about accomplishments."

* * *

><p>Halfway across Dimmsdale, in the suburbs, Timmy Turner was lying on his bed in a very negative mood, still upset by the events earlier that day that led to his humiliation. His 'goldfish' flew out of the fishbowl, and then, they were his Fairy Godparents, Wanda and Cosmo, as well as their baby Poof, who was chewing and drooling on a baby rattle.<p>

"Cheer up, sport!" exclaimed Wanda, "I'm sure you're just aching to wish for some ice cream or an amusement park or something to make you feel better!"

"Or a way to completely forget that ever happened in the first place!" exclaimed Cosmo, "That's what I did after I...I, uh...wait, what was it I forgot?"

Wanda did a face palm at her husbands's usual brand of stupidity as Timmy sat up.

"But that won't stop it from happening! And I'll just be laughed at tomorrow, even if I don't remember what for!"

"I'm sure things will only get better from now on!" exclaimed Wanda, "...Even though that particular phrase has backfired on me before."

"It never does!" exclaimed an angry Timmy, "No matter how many wishes I make, whether its for giant food or cool toys, it never helps me at school!"

"Well, there's not much you can do about that, sport," said Wanda.

"There is now," said Timmy, looking out the window, "Cosmo, Wanda...I wish nothing but bad things would happen to the popular kids from now on!"

Wanda and Cosmo nearly choked when they heard what Timmy wished for, and Poof almost swallowed his rattle.

"What, is that against Da Rules?" asked Timmy.

"Well, no, but..." said Wanda, "Timmy, I know those kids can be real jerks, but it's not like you to make a wish like that! Even when you do that stuff to Vicky, you always go through some over-extended moral dilemma and undo the wish again! I just don't want you making a wish you might regret!"

"Well I can always _unwish_ it if it backfires or gets out of hand, right?" asked Timmy, "So I wish you would just grant my wish!"

Looking at each other with a concerned look, Cosmo and Wanda lifted their wands and granted the wish.

And so it began.


	2. Gabriel for President

The next morning was the student assembly in Dimmsdale Elementary's auditorium. The occasion? The first and only Student Body Presidential 'Debate'. And just like Veronica said to Trixie the night before, the 'regulars' did in fact have a candidate of their own. The only reason the populars didn't automatically buy that candidate's spot was because they thought it would be amusing to see someone that wasn't popular try to win the presidency. Which one would think would have taught them a lesson. Timmy Turner ran against them once, and won (by a vote of 1-0), and briefly held the title of president before deliberately getting himself impeached. Up first was, of course, Tad and Chad, whose speech consisted of flashing a cool pose which got people cheering. And that was it. Afterwards, Principal Waxelpax, the air-headed school principal, announced the next candidate.

"And now, for the other candidate for Student Body President...Gabriel Ortiz!"

Regular students began to clap and cheer wildly for their candidate. Trixie and Veronica just looked at each other, recognizing the surname.

"Isn't Ortiz the name of the guy from that event last night?" asked Trixie.

"Oh yeah, I forgot, that's like, his dad or something," replied Veronica.

Trixie would have asked Veronica how she could forget something like that, but then it occurred to her...blonde cheerleader. Even other popular kids believed in the stereotype and applied it to Veronica. Gabriel looked a lot like his father, but was much more pale, and with a upper class accent, similar to Remy Buxaplenty, but less snobbish.

"Ladies and gentlemen of Dimmsdale Elementary," said Gabriel, "I stand before you, not as a candidate who places popularity over people, not someone who emphasizes a social hierarchy rather than a quality education, but as a proponent of equality."

Tad and Chad were already rolling their eyes, thinking the speech would go nowhere, but still made sure to pay attention to what Gabriel was saying.

"Perhaps you've seen in the news all sorts of terrible things about the top 1% of this country, or the ruling class in D.C. Well, not much we can do about that, but right now, here in our school, we are run under the same system. A minority of students with the most controlling interest in the way things are run. Where the few popular kids that are here are the ones who determine how things work."

Now Tad and Chad began to look concerned. Trixie and Veronica did, too. This was very similar to the speech Timmy gave when running against them in the past, and by dismissing it as just tripe from an unpopular, it had cost them.

"No one should have to go to school while walking the halls in fear. Money and popularity should not be the determining factors of who has more value in the education system. These people, these..._populars, _they are only placed above you because of their families' money. Money that, I may add, does not even belong to them. Money that should not be hoarded by these privileged few, but shared among all of us. By having these unfair advantages, the popular kids place a barrier between them and those of us living in the _real world_. But in truth, there shouldn't _be_ a barrier. We should all be considered one with each other."

The regulars were now fawning over their selected candidate, and the odd thing was...so was Trixie, but minus the mindless drooling from the other students. Without the barrier Gabriel was talking about, she could be free to express her tomboyish side without scrutiny from her popular friends. Perhaps electing this guy wouldn't be a bad thing at all.

"Now, before I conclude my speech, I would like to ask those of you considered 'not popular' to stand up...I mean _literally_ stand up."

Trixie obviously didn't do so; she still cared about appearances around her friends. But to the shock and amazement of herself, along with Veronica, Tad and Chad, all but a few students were standing up. Everyone recognized the numbers, and they all knew where Gabriel's speech was heading. And now he was looking directly at Tad and Chad while speaking.

"Do you get it, populars? Do you get it? You may hold the power, and you may have the money, but we outnumber you 100 to 1. There is an uprising in the works, gentlemen. You are the minority. And by the end of this week, I intend to show you what the majority really think of you...by voting you out!"

Raising his arm in a clenched fist, Gabriel's conclusion was met with thunderous applause from the student body, save for the obviously few populars. From the corner of her eye, Trixie noticed Timmy was jumping up and down in his seat, even more so than his friends Chester and A.J. It seemed as though he was already over yesterday's humiliating experience. In fact, everyone seemed to not pay it any mind. They were all caught up with Gabriel Ortiz...

* * *

><p>...who, as he himself stated would happen, was elected by the end of the week. For the unpopular crowd, there was nothing but joy and celebration when Principal Waxelpax scratched out the names of Tad and Chad on the Student Council and replaced it with Gabriel Ortiz; even more excitement when he was sworn in that very day. But for the populars, the worst was yet to come. No one hesitated to remind them that they were now out of power. That they were outnumbered. Even if they didn't say it with words, the smirks on their faces said enough. Something snapped inside Tad and Chad when they saw Timmy and his friends skipping down the halls proudly wearing "Ortiz Wins!" t-shirts over their usual attire. And neither of them resisted the urge to trip them as they passed by.<p>

"Hey, what's the big idea?" asked Timmy.

"Well why shouldn't we?" asked Tad, "You don't get to do what you want when we're passing the halls!"

"Populars don't get put beneath commoners," scoffed Chad.

"News flash, pompous jerks," said Timmy, standing up to the four populars, "You're not co-presidents anymore! You're not even on student council!"

"But we're still a symbol of who gets the better privileges," Tad sneered.

"Not anymore, you're not," said a voice from behind.

Gabriel Ortiz, with the "Student Body President" ribbon wrapped around him, was met with applause from the bystanders as he stood between Timmy and the four popular students.

"Trixie, would you like to do the honors?" asked Tad and Chad simultaneously.

"Of course," she replied, "SECURITY!"

Nothing. Not even a trash can popping out for putting unpopulars in.

"I'm afraid that has changed," said Gabriel, with the populars' bouncer standing next to him, "As will a great deal of things."

"Sorry, kiddos," said the bouncer, "I serve Gabriel now."

"What is the meaning of this?" cried Chad.

"Though you're no longer on the student council," said Gabriel, "You still flaunt money and possessions around your fellow school chums to remind them of your supposed superiority. But now, you are to embrace the winds of equality by walking in the same shoes."

Gabriel signaled for the bouncer to lunge at the four popular kids.

"Strip them."

It didn't even take five seconds. A cartoonish cloud erupted in the scene, and the populars found themselves in different clothes...street clothes. They were all wearing the same baggy jeans with red polo.

"What the...What did you do?" asked Veronica.

"As the new student body president," explained Gabriel, "It is my sworn duty to fulfill the promise of equality I made upon being elected president..._your_ president. You must now wear regular street clothes like the rest of your schoolmates in order to cast light off of your unfair advantages in society."

"What?" all four of them cried.

Everyone else, however, cheered, chanting for Gabriel Ortiz. It was only his first day, and his presidency was already taking off. Leaving the former populars behind, they were still trying to comprehend what had just happened.

"Who...does he think he is?" asked Tad.

It didn't get much better for them once they were on the school bus home. Normally, they would be escorted to the back of the bus where there would be a boiling hot Jacuzzi with their names on it...literally, they had their names painted in red on the side. But now it was gone. In its place was Gabriel and their former bouncer, signaling them to come forward.

"What did you do to our hot tub?" asked Veronica.

"That hot tub of yours was yet another symbol of your unfair advantage over the other students," said Gabriel, "Not to worry, you can get it back...provided everyone else gets the same privilege."

"Yeah, right!" shouted Chad, "Give it back now!"

His demand was met with angry response from the others.

"We're sick of you guys!"

"You're not better than us, you know!"

"You're getting what's coming to you!"

Gabriel smirked, knowing the crowd was on his side. For the first time in, well, ever...the four populars looked at Gabriel in desperation.

"Please!" Tad and Chad were on their knees begging, "We'll wear street clothes and we'll gladly stay off the student council, but not our hot tub!"

"Like I said, you can get it back," said Gabriel, "But everyone else must have the same privilege. Either everyone gets to soak in a hot tub on the bus...or no one does. The choice is yours."

It was a painful decision for them to make. Sharing hot tubs with commoners? But they didn't need another scolding from them. Besides, it was better than no hot tub at all.

"Fine..." muttered Chad, "We'll share the hot tubs."

"Yay!" everyone else exclaimed.

"See, was that so hard?" asked Gabriel, "Now our dream to achieve equality is even closer to fruition! Hot tubs for everyone!"

Soon, all the seats were replaced with golden hot tubs with purple rims, and no one has a name on it. That would mean someone was more special than another. The only one they were giving higher regards to was, of course, Gabriel, but he was the people's champion. He was looking out for them...right? This is what the four popular kids pondered while they soaked in the hot tub farthest away from everyone else.

"I don't get it," moaned Veronica, "When we flaunt our power, they whine and complain we're being stuck up snobs, but when this guy does it, they praise him?"

"Well, he is one of their own," said Trixie, leaning back on the rim of the hot tub, "I suppose they let it slide simply because he plays for their own team."

Speak of the devil, and he shall appear; as did Gabriel. He approached the end of their tub, the bouncer following behind him, and place his comforting but cautionary hands on both their shoulders.

"Congratulations, ladies and gents," Gabriel said, "You seem to be adjusting fabulously to your new social lives. Just a few more tweaks here and there, and you'll all be part of a new and magnificent learning experience."

"We don't _want_ to be part of your new and magnificent experience," complained Chad, "We _want_ our places back."

Gabriel's demeanor changed that moment. He took his hands off the girls, and went from soothing voice of comfort to an authoritative one. He looked Chad and Tad directly in the eyes and spoke.

"I'm afraid that can't happen," said Gabriel, "Your flaunting of power was getting out of control. I'm simply here to relieve the student body of your totalitarian methods. Now that I'm president, it is time for all of you to either become part of a fair-minded structure...or leave and not come back. You could always start a new one of your own. But I doubt that would be easy for you without your...wealthy parents' influence. Something they may not have for long."

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" asked Veronica.

"You'll see," said Gabriel, walking away, "Within time, you will see the error of your ways. Or fall to the bottom trying. Again, the choice is yours."

Gabriel left them to ponder these thoughts while passing by the regular crowd, all of whom gave him high-fives, fist bumps, and even a few kisses from the girls. He was their man. After he got to the end of the bus where only the driver could see the front, Gabriel stopped the bouncer.

"Keep the fools where they are," he told the bouncer sternly, "I have a call to make."

With the bouncer standing guard, Gabriel took out his cell phone and dialed the top number on his contacts list. The man was both his employer...and his father.

"Dr. Alexander Ortiz speaking," he said.

"It's going smoothly," Gabriel said, "I have them completely wrapped around my fingers."

"Good," said Dr. Alexander, "What about those rich kids that are there?"

"They're slowly being put in their place," said Gabriel, "With the people on my side, I can virtually get away with anything with or without the populars' consent. I'm their champion, after all. Now, what about Dark Horse?"

"It will be ready, shortly," replied Dr. Alexander, "The families of those kids will be making big investments into it, and before they realize what happens...they'll be crushed by it."

"I'll tell you though, I personally enjoy having these losers worship me," he said.

"Just don't let it get to your head," said Dr. Alexander, "You're not there to make friends or to be a hero. You're there to promote the cause we intend to implement to this entire town."

"Silly, silly father," said Gabriel, "Making friends and being the hero _is_ how I intend to promote the cause. The more allies I have...the easier my job will be."


	3. The Aftereffects

Jeffrey Tang was walking down the long, neatly decorated hallway with Konda, his Chief of Security. He often had to look upwards to see the man's face, for he was quite tall. One half of his head (the left half) had been shaved, and the other half went to the side of his face. And of course, like many in the house, he was of Asian heritage.

"I'll be in the library talking with my brother about this new deal he's offering," said Jeffrey, "But I don't want anyone interrupting us, and I think Ramsey would like it the same way. So I would like you to stand outside the library doors until the meeting is over."

"Of course," said Konda.

With Konda standing outside the doors, Jeffrey was able to enter the library quietly. Not that he should have been overly cautious in his own house. He was just anxious about having a meeting with his younger brother. Or the fact that even though it was his house, somehow Ramsey had already gotten inside and made himself at home on one of the magenta loveseats. Jeffrey sat in the other, the one directly across from his brother.

"I'm glad we can have this conversation, Jeffrey," said Ramsey, "It's good to finally be able to come to terms like this."

"I just hope we can put our past feuds behind us and reach a reasonable settlement," added Jeffrey.

"As do I," replied Ramsey, "Dr. Ortiz told me you've contributed a little to Gemini Labs. Now, let's be serious...How would you like to expand your business even further through us?"

* * *

><p>Trixie finally got home during this meeting. It had been two weeks since Gabriel Ortiz was voted into office and already, there were less signs of class warfare occurring at the school. Tad and Chad were still pissed about being reduced to the same level as commoners, but knowing how much power and influence Gabriel wielded, they realized quickly it would be futile to go against him. Especially now that their own bouncer was in his pocket. Trixie had noticed more than anyone else that the line between popular and regular was slowly fading. And she didn't completely hate it. She had been so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn't notice that her cousin Talbot was sitting on one end of the ridiculously long dining table.<p>

"You're here unusually early," said Talbot, "Dad mentioned you elementary school kids got out much later than older students."

"Well, normally I sit in during the student council meetings for the school paper," said Trixie, sitting down on the other side, "But now that Gabriel Ortiz is the sole face of the Student Government, there's no need for meetings anymore."

"Ortiz, eh?" pondered Talbot, "That's my dad's boss's name. They related?"

"They're father and son," replied Trixie.

"Well how about that?" wondered Talbot, "But you don't sound overly disappointed by this Gabriel practically taking over."

"Well, to be honest," confessed Trixie, "I voted for him."

"Wait, you did?" asked Talbot, a look of shock on his face, "I heard through the grapevine you were part of the popular kid's group. I thought you would be angered by Gabriel."

"On a public display, yes, I have to be," replied Trixie, "But on a personal one...I dunno, it would be nice if I could go to school as myself and not as some queen bee or that "forbidden fruit" guys like to talk about."

"Heh, forbidden fruit," chuckled Talbot, "Kids today know a lot more of that than when my generation was their age."

"Your generation?" asked Trixie, "We're only six years apart!"

"Your point?" asked Talbot.

"Not important," remarked Trixie, "It's just odd to hear that when my parents are practically grooming me to lead the 'family business' once I'm old enough."

"And that..._bothers_ you?" asked a puzzled Talbot, "You don't appreciate being as well off as you are?"

""Well, don't get me wrong, I like being rich and popular," replied Trixie, "But I don't want to have to grow up faster than I need to. I really wish there was a way to fix all that."

"Well, if this Gabriel Ortiz is anything like you've said," said Talbot. "You may be right."

Footsteps were heard from down the hall, and in a few moments, Ramsey and Jeffrey, accompanied by Konda, emerged from the hall into the room.

"I'm glad we're finally able to see eye to eye on this matter," said Ramsey, "And I trust you will be pleased with the results of our endeavors."

"What's going on?" asked Trixie, taking an unusually sudden interest in her father's work.

"My company will be working more closely with Gemini Labs to promote the field of Biochemistry in our community," replied Jeffrey, "And now that I've seen what can be done, I've spared no expense in our contributions."

"Uh, are you sure that's a good idea, Uncle Jeffrey?" asked Talbot, "You sure you don't want to reserve a little for yourself in case it doesn't work out?"

"Have you no faith in our efforts, Talbot?" asked Ramsey, "I assure you that once you see the results, you will be most pleased."

"I can escort you two home if you are finished here," said Konda.

"That would be marvelous," exclaimed Ramsey.

Ramsey followed Konda out the main door, and after Talbot waved goodbye to his cousin Trixie, he did too. As soon as he was sure they were gone, Jeffrey wiped his forehead with a neatly folded handkerchief in his shirt pocket.

"I really hope this was worth it," he muttered.

Though he was sure he was inaudible, Trixie heard her father. And as much as she loathed the idea of being too involved in grown-up affairs, she couldn't help but wonder what had her father so anxious. Especially when Uncle Ramsey was not.

* * *

><p>"Okay, we've called this emergency meeting to devise a way to get rid of Gabriel Ortiz," announced Tad.<p>

The popular kids were at a private resort in the center of Dimmsdale, and all four of them had been sitting in one of the brightly-lit conference rooms, complete with a projector for the slideshow Tad and Chad prepared for their anticipated plot to rid their lives of Gabriel.

"What did you have in mind?" asked Veronica.

"Our best bet is blackmail and/or incriminating evidence against him," replied Chad, "But since we've been depleted of many of our resources, courtesy of Gabriel, we'll need to rely on someone else to get the information we need."

"And since he's a commoner, we have no choice but to offer social amnesty to him in return for his cooperation," added Tad, moving on to the next slide in the slideshow, "The bald-headed one, who we've learned is named 'A.J', is a boy genius with seemingly limitless resources and inventions. And despite the fact his family is nearly as wealthy as us, Gabriel has overlooked him due to his status as 'unpopular'."

"If we can get his cooperation," added Chad, "He will undoubtedly be able to find dirt on Gabriel that can knock him off that pedestal of his!"

"Yeah!" exclaimed Tad and Veronica.

Trixie, however, sat in silence. She wasn't thinking about the situation at school. She did, after all, vote for Gabriel, unbeknownst to the other populars, though she did admit there were privileges he revoked that she missed. She was more concerned with what was going on with her family. Her dad and Uncle Ramsey had barely been on speaking terms in the past, but now all of a sudden, they were making business deals left and right. Why all the secrecy about it, too? She didn't forget how one of the family bodyguards, the one they called Konda, had been guarding the doors to make sure no one interrupted. Granted, a lot of business deals were like that, but the circumstances otherwise pointed to something else. And why was Talbot second-guessing her dad's decision? Did he know something important? It seemed as though there were something bad he was hiding to suggest her dad pull at least some of his money out of the project.

"Uh, Earth to Trixie, are you with us?" asked Veronica.

"...Yeah, I'm fine," replied Trixie.

But Veronica knew her best friend better than that. Something really was bothering her, and it wasn't about school.

* * *

><p>"I gotta say, school has been <em>great <em>lately!" exclaimed Timmy, lying down on his bed, "I don't think I've ever been able to say that before!"

"Well, at least you're not coming home angry everyday," said Wanda, "But you haven't needed to make a lot of wishes lately."

"Except for the colossal fudge sundae wish!" Cosmo pointed out, "But you still didn't wish for that village it landed on to be rebuilt!"

"I know, right?" pondered Timmy, "I guess ever since you granted that wish for bad things to happen to the popular kids, I haven't needed as much cheering up! Though Vicky definitely makes up for that..."

"Well, uh, sport," said Wanda, "The thing about that is...well...we didn't actually grant that wish for you."

"Wait...what?" asked Timmy, sitting up on his bed.

"Well as it turns out," said Wanda, "There are a few bullet points in Da Rules that prohibited us from granting it. Everything that's happened has been completely natural."

"So...you mean Gabriel," said Timmy, "It's all been him."

"If that's what else has been going on, yes," said Wanda.

Timmy sat back down on his bed, not saying a word as Wanda went to put a stop to Cosmo and Poof's disastrous stunts in the background. All this time, his godparents had granted him wishes to help him forget his school problems. Gabriel actually managed to get rid of the problem altogether.

_So why couldn't they?_


	4. The Taste of Defeat

Jeffrey had a restless night. This was not a good thing for him. He had to give his company all of the updates in regards to their merging with Gemini Labs. And yet, he couldn't get his mind off the more negative aspects his brother had presented him. But an opportunity that big was too much to pass up, so he caved and invested nearly everything the Tang family was worth into the project. The one they called 'Dark Horse'. Beatrix was still asleep next to him, and since she wasn't going to be disturbed anytime soon, Jeffrey got out of bed, put on his slippers, and walked down the hall to the bathroom. He didn't really think to use the private one in his own bedroom. Between restlessness and Dark Horse, Jeffrey was a nervous wreck.

He passed by Trixie's bedroom, and one of the doors was creaked open. He could see his 10-year-old princess sleeping soundly as if she didn't have a care in the world. Just like her mom. Not that either one of them had a care. At least so long as Jeffrey didn't screw up what he was supposed to do. If he did, he and his family would lose more than just their money.

_Please let this all be worth it. Please_.

* * *

><p>The four popular kids sat across a table in a rather unusually long classroom. They had just enough influence among the teachers to get one reserved. At half past 11, when some of the students went to lunch, the person they had been expecting had walked through the door. A.J. And he had been carrying a file with him.<p>

"So in return for social amnesty, you'll give us dirt on Gabriel Ortiz?" asked Tad.

"Actually, I've made changes to the agreement," replied A.J, "Timmy and Chester have to get social amnesty too."

"Those losers?" asked Chad, "You're pushing your luck!"

"Do you want the dirt or not?" asked A.J., "Because if you have any other choice, why am I here?"

A.J knew he had made the point everyone had known to be true. Tad and Chad reluctantly gave in to the change int he agreement.

"Alright, them too," said Chad, "What do you have?"

A.J pulled out a remote from his back pocket and when he pressed it, a projector came down next to him. On it was a pie chart with various colors.

"The first thing I'm showing you," said A.J, "is a demographic of the sort of people Gabriel Ortiz involves himself with on an average daily basis and how much time for each. This has all been compiled from personal records I managed to swipe from his school transcripts. Only 44% of them consist of those of us here at school. 47% of them are workers involved with his dad's line of work. 2% is just 'VIGILANCE'. I don't know what that is, but it can't be too important if it's only 2%."

"What about the last one?" asked Chad.

What he was referring to was the pie piece shaded red that consisted of the remaining 7% of the chart.

"That's just labeled Dark Horse," replied A.J, "But I don't know what that means."

"So how is this going to help take down Gabriel?" asked Trixie, pretending to be supportive.

"His dad works for Gemini Labs," replied A.J, "And they've gotten some seriously bad rap over the years. The guy who founded the labs, Dr. Kaspar Corr, was plagued by federal investigations for crimes against humanity. And yet he always dodged any form of consequence. At least for a while."

"What does that man?" asked Veronica.

"He was killed last year at a convention in Tremorton," replied A.J, "And VIGILANCE, the guys consisting of this 2%, were the perpetrators."

"So you're saying Gabriel has his hands dirty?" pondered Chad, "That he sides with criminals and therefore can't be trusted..."

"It's the best we've got to go on," said Tad, "Not perfect, but at least it will put Gabriel back where he belongs."

* * *

><p>Not a moment sooner, the four popular kids marched into the cafeteria to confront Gabriel, who was surrounded by his adoring voters. Especially Timmy Turner. Gabriel simply turned from the business chair that he had added as a perk for being student body president and looked at the four popular kids.<p>

"Gotten in any trouble lately?" asked Gabriel.

"The only one in any trouble is _you_, Gabriel," replied Chad, "We think it's time your darling admirers know what kind of crowd you're really from!"

"I hardly think my father being a chief administrator of Gemini Labs is any secret," retorted Gabriel.

Tad and Chad, like they did in the good old days, clapped their hands, and a projector was lowered into the cafeteria. The pie chart A.J had presented to them was now being shown to everyone in the school.

"How about your father being a chief administrator of a facility founded by a man charged with crimes against humanity?" asked Tad, "One Kaspar Corr?"

"Or how about VIGILANCE?" asked Chad, "The guys who bombed a public venue and simultaneously _killed_ Kaspar Corr?"

"Or Dark Horse?" asked Veronica, "Or anything else you've hidden from your supporters?"

Though Gabriel put on a smug appearance and kept his usual demeanor, he had actually been worried about the Dark Horse part. As he stated before, there was no secret he was involved with Gemini Labs. And he had enough charisma to smooth talk his way out of the VIGILANCE bit. But how was he going to explain Dark Horse without ruining it? He was kidding himself, of course. There wasn't a way. That wasn't supposed to be public knowledge. It should have been known only to Gemini Labs personnel and it's investors. What were a bunch of school kids with too much time of their hands doing with a vital piece of knowledge about him? He was working on a way to explain himself, until...

"Looks who's talking!" shouted Timmy Turner.

"You talking back to us, Turner?" growled Tad.

Tad almost lunged at Timmy, were it not for the popular kids' former bouncer jumping in front to bounce him back onto the ground, flat on his back.

"Let the man speak his piece," declared Gabriel, regaining his confidence.

"You really think anybody cares what kind of rough and unpleasant history he may have?" asked Timmy, "At least he can relate to those of us without perfect lives! It's better than having happy-go-lucky rich kids with a perfect home life represent the rest of us who don't have it all!"

As the crowd cheered for Timmy's latest (but brief) speech, Gabriel clapped his hands for the pink-hatted boy. Now he was no longer the only one who would come to the rescue when the popular kids stepped out of line. Timmy Turner had gained a new passionate fire for standing up to his oppressors, and soon enough, everyone else would follow suit.

_He could very well be the face of our new society_, thought Gabriel, _MY society_.

"Well, are we just gonna stand here and take this?" asked Trixie.

To her surprise, Tad and Chad did not speak a word. They didn't even try to make orders. They turned in disappointment and left the cafeteria, defeated by the crowd's roaring applause for Timmy. Veronica and Trixie looked at each other, confused, but still followed the two boys out from the cafeteria.

"You didn't even try to fight back?" Veronica asked them, "What were you guys thinking?"

"What's the point?" asked Tad morosely, "We wouldn't have been able to do anything."

The girls stood in silence as the boys reflected.

"That 'happy-go-lucky' quip was a low blow for Turner," said Chad, "Does he really think just because we're rich and popular that we have perfect lives? Not that we made it easy to see, but even so..."

"My dad can be a real dick sometimes, goes around the mansion yelling at my mom for no good reason," said Tad.

"At least _your_ dad has work to blame for his issues," said Chad, "It would be nice to see my dad not come home from the office with empty flasks in his coat...or cheating on my mom behind her back."

Trixie had never seen Tad or Chad this open about their personal lives. And she wasn't too comfortable with this new knowledge, either.

"I guess it would be nice if, once in a while, my parents actually paid attention to me," Veronica said lowering her head.

"So why didn't any of this come out when Timmy was..." Trixie started to say.

"It wouldn't have mattered," said Chad, "They wouldn't have listened. They didn't even care about what we were saying about Gabriel. All it takes is one bad thing to say about him, and the entire school body will be there rushing to his defense."

"Especially Turner," said Tad, "He's been sticking to Gabriel like glue."

"So...that's it, then?" asked Veronica, "We...we lost?"

"Gabriel was right after all," said Chad, "There's no room for us here anymore. It's their world, now."

"It's officially over..." said Tad.

The three of them walked sadly down the hall towards what used to be their private little room, now occupied solely by Gabriel. Trixie followed shortly behind. She too had noticed the change in Timmy Turner. The last time he had successfully run against Tad and Chad, he still had the same passion for sticking up to the system. He still had that going for him, but now without realizing it, he himself had become the system. And it was all through Gabriel Ortiz's handiwork. Timmy Turner wasn't the same person that, deep down, she knew he was. Whatever gave Timmy a real sense of good, Gabriel had chewed it up, spat it out, and replaced it with his own distorted vision.

_I regret voting for him now._


	5. Last Chance

Jeffrey and his work colleagues stood in shock and horror as they watch what was unveiled in front of them. Two months passed since his company, along with many others, signed onto the project Gemini Labs was implementing in Dimmsdale. They were promised a huge payoff for their investments. Instead, the project nearly depleted them all, save for Gemini Labs itself. Jeffrey flashed back to when his nephew Talbot was asking Ramsey if investing that much money was really such a wise idea. He should have listened to Talbot. Before the actual urgent meeting was called for among the fat cats, Jeffrey demanded answers from Ramsey, who was looking out the dome-shaped window out into the facility's well-decorated hedge maze surrounding the central fountain, his back turned to Jeffrey. Konda had been standing just behind Jeffrey, remaining silent as the conversation went on.

"You told me this would be an opportunity!" shouted Jeffrey, "That we could do great things with this!"

"The thing about opportunities, Jeffrey," said Ramsey, not even turning around to look his brother in the eye, "is that it means you have a _chance_ to do great things. That's not a guarantee you would actually succeed."

"I trusted you on this!" exclaimed Jeffrey, "How do you think I feel right now, not being able to trust my own blood relative?"

"Funny," mused Ramsey, stroking his big white beard, "I've felt the same about you for a very long time."

"This is all because I made it rich and you didn't, isn't it?" asked Jeffrey.

"Wrong," replied Ramsey, "For me, this is because _when_ you struck it big, you turned your back on the rest of us little folks. You started wining and dining with your fat cat 'friends' while I had to work just to keep a roof over my head. And then when Talbot came along, that was an extra mouth to feed. A mouth you had no intention of feeding with your own pocket change. Yes, when it comes down to it, you're an all-around, lousy scum bucket, and I've never been happier to see you and your circle of cronies at the bottom of the food chain!"

"If you're so mad at me over this, why didn't you focus on just me?" asked Jeffrey, "Why did you have to knock my family down with me? Do you know I have to tell my wife and daughter we need to sell their fancy clothes just to keep ourselves fed? Why does the city's economic stability have to suffer because of your own jealousy? For God's sake, Ramsey, why are you working for Gemini? Why are you doing all this?"

"For Dark Horse!" boasted Ramsey, "For the future!"

"What...what kind of future can be built from this?" asked Jeffrey.

"Perhaps you should make your way inside," said Ramsey, "I understand there's a sneak peek at what our efforts have brought about."

* * *

><p>It was the same story for all four of the popular kids clique. Their parents came home, looking like they had walked through Hell and back, though they may as well have. They were then told about how much money the families had actually lost, and that Gemini Labs was more or less in complete control of Dimmsdale, and that they would have to start making sacrifices like normal households. The four kids were crying to each other over their phones, which would probably have to be exchanged for average phones. And all four of them knew that somehow, Gabriel Ortiz was at the heart of it.<p>

_The others may have given up_, thought Trixie, _but not me_.

If Trixie's suspicions were right, Gabriel was just using Timmy. And there was only one way to find out for sure. One way to stop it before it could get worse. With the limited connections the Tang family had left, Trixie called for a limo to escort her to the Turner household.

* * *

><p>Three goldfish, each color coded to match Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof, were sitting inside the castle in their fishbowl. It was much larger on the inside than it was on the outside. It made for a nice weekend getaway when they needed one, but they weren't fond of the fact that every wall, floor, and ceiling was painted the same shade of purple. All three fairy godparents were sitting at the long dining room table after enjoying a large feast.<p>

"I must admit, it is nice to be not needed enough for us to have alone time like this," said Wanda.

"Alone time?" asked Cosmo, "Why didn't you say that before? Now I have to ask my nickel Philip to leave the table! How rude would that be?"

The romantic date, however, was suddenly interrupted by a loud boom that shook the entire foundation of the fish bowl. Proofing themselves back into Timmy's room, the three of them saw the giant muscle man known as Jorgen von Strangle pop into the room.

"It is time, puny fairies!" boomed Jorgen.

"Time for what? Dessert? Tea time? Don't say it yet, I wanna guess!" rambled Cosmo.

"Silence, puny fairy!" Jorgen boomed again, "It is time for all fairies to face their greatest danger yet!"

"Flying cows? Crab people? Mermaids?" asked Cosmo.

"Let the man speak, Cosmo!" Wanda said, whacking Cosmo in the back of his head.

"All will be explained in Fairy World," said Jorgen, "We must leave now!"

"Wait!" exclaimed Wanda, "What about Timmy? We can't just leave him behind!"

"I'm afraid Timmy Turner is too involved to be of help to us," said Jorgen.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Wanda.

"It means his allegiance has already been taken by an unofficial enemy of Fairies," replied Jorgen, "He may not be aware of it, but for the time being, Timmy Turner is not in a position to be trusted, and thus he is not to know what is discussed tonight. Now let's go!"

The fairies proofed out of the room just as a certain rich, popular girl approached the door to Timmy's house.

* * *

><p>"Oh, he's in the kitchen with one of his little friends!" exclaimed Mrs. Turner, "You can go on in! It's just to the right."<p>

Trixie wasted no time entering the house. While Mr. and Mrs. Turner left the house for a night out, Trixie walked into the spacious kitchen to speak with Timmy. But as she should have guessed by what his mom had said, Timmy was not alone. The very person she came to warn Timmy about was the 'little friend' he was sitting with.

"Oh hello there, Trixie," said Gabriel with a fake grin, "Fancy seeing you here."

"Trixie?" Timmy asked. She never gave him the time of day before. She may not have known he even existed. So why was she now standing in his kitchen?

"What are _you_ doing here?" asked Trixie bitterly.

"I'm just getting comfortable with the rest of the Turner household," replied Gabriel, "Since Timmy is going to be my new aide on the student council."

"As opposed to a _slave_ like the old student body had," said Timmy.

"_Old _student body," mused Gabriel, "The follies of the past. Good thing we're under new management. Now, the real question is...what are _you_ doing here?"

Their attention turned back to Trixie, still standing in the kitchen.

"I'm here to speak to Timmy," replied Trixie.

"Alright, go ahead," said Gabriel.

Trixie groaned at Gabriel's response, as if he didn't know what she meant.

"I meant speak to him _alone_," hissed Trixie.

Timmy looked to Gabriel for approval, but he merely shrugged.

"I'm not stopping you, you two have your word."

Gabriel opened up a notebook concealed in his brown jacket while Timmy and Trixie walked outside into his backyard.

"You never do so much as acknowledge me at all," said Timmy, "Until now, I wasn't sure you knew I even existed. Why should I listen to what you have to say?"

Trixie almost missed how he used to constantly seek her affection, and under ordinary circumstances, he probably would have brought out exotic flowers and a unicorn for her.

"Because I know you, Timmy Turner," replied Trixie, "Even if I don't acknowledge you in public, I know deep down you're a decent guy. But that guy isn't here anymore, and he's been replaced by a sap."

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Timmy, becoming more agitated.

"It means you're being used by Gabriel," Trixie replied, "And Gabriel is bad news."

Both looked into the window at Gabriel jotting down notes. Timmy briefly considered her words, but then another thought occurred to her.

"I get what's going on," he said.

"You do?" asked Trixie.

"Yes," replied Timmy. Trixie looked at him with bright, hopeful eyes, but Timmy's gaze turned into a glare. "You and your thugs are going broke. And you all want your money back so you can use it to put the rest of us down, and you think just because I _used_ to be in love with you, that you could try and manipulate me into turning my back on Gabriel and messing up a perfectly good system!"

"What?" asked Trixie, "No, Timmy, that's not..."

"It's not what? It's not 'like that'? That's what you were going to say, wasn't it?"

"Well, yes, but..."

"If you cared so much about what I do, why did you treat me like dirt all the time? Why wait until now if it was for anything other than your money and your status?"

"Timmy, I swear, I didn't mean..."

"We know what you mean," said Gabriel, who had been standing at the doorway for a while now, "Maybe it's best you just leave him alone."

To Timmy, that was his new best friend sticking up for him. But to Trixie, that was another way of saying "Get lost." Knowing she wouldn't make any more progress, she conceded and walked back inside to head out.

"This isn't over," she whispered to Gabriel.

And that was exactly what Gabriel was hoping for her to say. That final confirmation that, like her friends and their families, she was against him. Right into the wiretap taped to his chest.

* * *

><p>"My son has just given us official confirmation," said Dr. Ortiz, "You niece is an enemy of Gemini Labs."<p>

Dr. Ortiz, sitting in his office chair at an early evening hour, turned to the opposite side of his desk where Ramsey was sitting. And he had news as well.

"My brother is also against us as well. Once we told them the purpose of Dark Horse, they demanded it be stopped. At least until the mayor of Dimmsdale ordered the approval of the project."

"The fool is entirely in our pocket now," said Dr. Ortiz, "But we'll have to deal with the deserters appropriately. The theft of their money alone is not enough to put them in their place. They'll need to be rounded up, and we'll need it done soon. Tonight, if possible."

"Isn't it up to _him_ when we make our next move?" asked Ramsey.

"The Commander already sent a regiment of Bagmen to us for a full assault," replied Dr. Ortiz.

"I see," said Ramsey, "But if we're going to do this, I would like to request a favor."

"And that is?"

"Let _me_ deal with the Tangs," said Ramsey, spitting the family name out as if it were not his own, "This one is personal to me."

Dr. Ortiz gave it careful consideration, and then he reached his decision.

"Done," said Dr. Ortiz, "You alone may decide their fate."


	6. Night of Falling Tears

Within the dreams of a 10 year old girl, all of life's problems can be forgotten. None of the Gabriel Ortiz society, or Gemini Labs, or the new and 'improved' Timmy Turner. None of that could infect Trixie's dreams. The eerie calm of night sent her into a deep sleep, dreaming of the old days. Back when Trixie and her clique had every little thing wrapped around their fingers. They were sitting in an outdoor lounge with the coolest sofas and hottest lunches. Even with that, the normal kids didn't seem to mind at all. They were content with the individual picnics each of them had set up. Even one for her family, including her mother, father, uncle and cousin. And they were all actually getting along! Knowing everything in her dreams would be perfect, she grabbed a red velvet cupcake offered to her by Tad and Chad, and sunk her teeth into it.

That was when the sky transformed from light blue to a deep crimson red. The clouds looked as though they were bloodstains in the sky. And no one was having any more picnics. They were all at each others' throats. It had gone from paradise to inferno in the blink of an eye. When she turned around, Tad and Chad were not in their fancy purple jackets. They were wearing baggy clothes with holes in them, smelling of sewage. Veronica was lying unconscious on the ground, with bruises all over her body. Trixie tried to scream, but she couldn't. Her voice was left unheard in her own dream.

Running past the feuding parties, Trixie ran into the burning plains just ahead, only to trip and fall on a tree trunk. As soon as she hit the ground, the scenery changed. She was not in the nightmarish hole Dimmsdale had become. She was now in space, with all the stars and constellations floating around her. But the only one that drew itself out for her, however, was the one directly in front of her. Lines began to connect between the stars, forming the Gemini symbol. At that moment, a group of individuals, all faded black but still distinguishable, stood in front of the Gemini stars. Her father was dragged away by the pull of the other stars. Uncle Ramsey stepped directly inside the Gemini constellation, entering the unknown realm behind it. The father-son duo of Gabriel and Dr. Alexander linked arms, causing Gabriel to fuse with his father's body, before walking in as well.

Her mother and Cousin Talbot were the last ones left. And their images horrified her. Her mother was glowing from the inside, and when the light shone on the rest of her body, it exploded, leaving falling stars going down into the black hole beneath them. Talbot looked down on her as she fell, and without doing anything, faded off to the side. Before Trixie could look to see where he went, a loud rumble echoed throughout the space. Large, bloody claws reached out at her from the black hole. Just like before, she couldn't scream. She stopped resisting and let herself be dragged into the hole.

Now it was just pitch black. Trixie was all alone now. Or so she thought. A floating orb with a dim light approached her, showing Timmy Turner inside. And it looked like he was suffering. She tried to grab it, but when she touched it, the light turned red, and the orb violently threw Trixie back before fading away. All that was left was the loud, booming voice coming from all directions. "Wake up, Trixie!" it cried, "Wake up!"

It was her father who woke Trixie up from her nightmare. Still in his nightgown, Jeffrey shook Trixie awake in a panic.

"Daddy...what's going on?" asked Trixie, rubbing her sleepy eyes.

"We have to leave," he replied, "Right now."

Trixie would have argued back, or at least asked why, but she was still sleepy, so she just went along with her father when he grabbed her hand and ran out the room, meeting up with Beatrix. And when they could see the foyer, Trixie jolted herself awake now that she knew what the emergency was.

The Tang family's entire security force was fighting off strange figures crashing in through the windows. The intruders were covered completely in body-suits made of bags. Almost like a cross between a scarecrow and a toy doll. Only neither of those were slicing their way past security to go up the staircase. Some of them were held back by Konda, who was walking backwards up the stairs in a defensive position, withdrawing his trusty Colt .45 to fight back, firing at the intruders as he guided the Tang family down a separate staircase

"What's happening, Konda?" asked Beatrix.

"They are from Gemini Labs, ma'am," replied Konda, "They must be here to tie up loose ends."

"I knew I shouldn't have trusted them," said Jeffrey, "I should have listened to Talbot's warning!"

Jeffrey didn't have much longer to berate himself. Some of the intruders were waiting for them in the dining room, forcing Konda to take them on a detour through the massive backyard. It didn't matter that the lights were still on in the gardens. They were still outnumbered. Jeffrey picked up his daughter and hid her behind the most secluded hedge they could find.

"Stay here," said Jeffrey, "Don't come out, no matter what."

"But..." Trixie's voice trailed off.

"We'll come back for you," said Beatrix, "Promise!"

Trixie watched as the three of them ran away from the hedge, only to find themselves surrounded by the intruders. Beatrix made a run for it, but tripped on her own ankle.

"Beatrix!" cried Jeffrey.

Before Jeffrey could help, several of the intruders had him pinned down to the ground.

"Konda! Help us!" cried Jeffrey, reaching out to him.

With gun in hand, Konda turned towards Jeffrey with an affirmative look.

"Of course," said Konda, who with a surprisingly calm tone, said, "Let him up, Bagmen. He ain't hurtin' nobody."

The only thing that surprised Jeffrey more than the fact that the Bagmen helped him up was the fact that Konda was not speaking in a proper accent, but rather a southern accent.

"Konda?" asked a confused Jeffrey, "Why did they listen to you?"

"Because they wanna see what comes next," replies Konda, "They know a good show when they see one."

Konda turned to Beatrix, who was crawling away, and shot her where she was. She didn't even twitch. Both Jeffrey and Trixie watched in horror. Trixie had to cover her mouth to keep her screams from being heard, though she freely let tears fall down her cheeks. Jeffrey didn't scream, but he was clearly broken by what he just witnessed.

"Konda? Why?" cried Jeffrey.

"Yeah, all that stuff I said in my job application about bein' a disciplined monk from th' mountains was a load of crap," Konda said in his real voice, "I was born an' raised in the south an average schmuck. Not good circumstances, y'know, being poor an' everything, had to do some bad things to keep myself fed. So once I grew outta youth, I became a gun-for-hire."

"And _we_ are his current clients."

The voice came from Ramsey, who had emerged from behind the Bagmen, wearing an over-sized trench coat with his hands in the pockets, as if he had been on a casual stroll while all the chaos ensued around him.

"Ramsey?" asked Jeffrey.

"Surprised?" asked Ramsey, "Konda works for _us_. He may be a mercenary, but we both have something in common."

"From th' moment I was assigned to pose as yer bodyguard," said Konda, "I rued the very existence of that little girl who lived in this big ol' mansion, not caring about anyone or anythin' else. Or the fat bastard who spoiled that girl an' made her the way she is."

"Konda, please," begged Jeffrey, "Don't take any of this out on her! She's just a little girl!"

"I was a little boy when I was first mugged by older kids for what little lunch money I had," replied Konda, "But did my pop ever beg them to have mercy on me? Nope, I learned th' art of blade-wieldin' and took matters into my own hands. That's what th' world is, Jeffrey. Survival of th' fittest, and only the strong survive. You, Jeffrey, an' all yer fat cat friends...are weak. You don't belong in this world."

"Not so fast there, Konda," said Ramsey, almost jokingly, "_I'm_ a fat cat now too thanks to Gemini Labs."

"All th' same," said Konda, "Out with th' old, in with th' new. Take him away."

As the Bagmen dragged Jeffrey away, rain began to fall on Dimmsdale. Conveniently, Ramsey pulled out an umbrella from his trenchcoat. Konda did not mind the rain, so he did not cover himself.

"What about the kids?" asked Ramsey, "Any traces of them?"

"Trixie may not be far away from th' mansion," replied Konda, "She couldn't have gone far. As for Talbot...he has not been seen over the past couple of days."

"I was afraid of this," said Ramsey, "He may have turned to VIGILANCE."

"Do you still want me to bring your son back _alive_?" asked Konda, sounding almost eager to make another kill.

"Bring them _both_ alive," replied Ramsey, giving Konda a stern look, "I'm not fond of killing children. Besides, the Commander explicitly demanded they both be brought to him alive."

"Well, as long as you guys roll out th' dough, they'll be back alive," said Konda, "But I can't promise they'll return unscathed."

Both adults left the premises, getting ready to occupy the mansion for their new base of operations. The coast had been clear for some time, but Trixie would not leave the hedges for a good hour. She would spend that hour crying out every last tear she could over her parents' fates.

Especially her mother.


	7. Under Cover of Darkness

Two days had passed since the raid on Tang Manor. And in those two days, Dimmsdale underwent a fundamental transformation. Bagmen consistently patrolled the streets, and only citizens who worked fully and completely with Gemini Labs were seen in public simply because they were the only ones allowed to. All the others were either captured or on the run, and at this rate, it wouldn't be long before they were found.

One of those on the run was Trixie Tang. As of two days ago, she watched her mother die in front of her. Her father had been taken away by his wicked brother Ramsey, and she had no idea if he was alive or dead. She only traveled by night, and spent the daytime hiding in the darkest alleyways and any abandoned warehouses she could find. Hardly the lavish lifestyle she was used to, but she could hardly complain now that she was legitimately afraid for her life. Something told her those Bagmen were not above harming children.

Whenever she traveled at night, she wore her tomboy clothes (the only pair of clothing besides her usual purple-turtleneck-with-white-skirt-and-matching-boots attire she could grab when she briefly snuck back into her room after the raid). Fortunately, aside from the Bagmen, no one was really looking for a 10-year-old girl on the run, so no one questioned why there was a kid roaming the streets in the rain. Every night, she'd pass by the old TV store, and on every screen, the news would have reports on Gemini's forced acquisition of Dimmsdale. And yet, no one sent help. Even when there were others who knew what was going on, no one seemed to be taking action. Almost as if they were forced to not help.

* * *

><p>"I must commend you for your brilliant manipulation of young Timmy Turner," said Dr. Alexander Ortiz, looking across the dimmed conference room at his son, "I had my doubts, but you really pulled through."<p>

"It wasn't that difficult," said Gabriel, looking out the window at the rainstorm falling down on the newly-conquered city, "I just dropped little hints about not wanting outsiders to get in the way of our progress. Whether he thought I was speaking of the student body schism, or Dimmsdale as a whole, he seemed to put the pieces together and, just like we planned, he used his Fairy Godparents to wish no one could come help the enemy."

"How specific was he?" asked Dr. Alexander.

"He got the idea to make Dimmsdale impossible to find by those on the outside," replied Gabriel, "Like dropping a location off a GPS. Though he has no idea we know of his magical abilities. Essentially, unless someone actually leaves Dimmsdale and were to theoretically return, a whopping total of _zero_ people will be able to find this city."

* * *

><p>A very similar conversation was taking place in Fairy World, specifically the Fairy Court, where Cosmo was tending to Poof while Wanda conversed with Jorgen von Strangle.<p>

"Someone knows we're Timmy's fairy godparents?!" cried Wanda.

Obviously, she'd be worried. Having their identities as fairy godparents exposed would be cause for being taken away from Timmy.

"More than one," replied Jorgen gravely, "And not just about you two; they know all about magic in general. That is why I have called all Fairy Godparents here. Until we learn who is behind this, all Fairy Godparents must have no contact with the human world."

"B-Behind what?" asked Wanda.

* * *

><p>"I was surprised Ramsey and his son Talbot could go along with the whole 'magic' thing so easily," said Gabriel.<p>

"Not so much," said Dr. Alexander, leaning back in his leather desk chair, "It's not so much them believing in magic, as it is them humoring the Commander. _He's_ the one who is providing the most pivotal pieces of information in that regard. And as long as he's bankrolling Gemini Labs, we will _all_ cooperate with him."

* * *

><p>"Someone in the human world has their eyes set on a powerful artifact hidden somewhere in Dimmsdale," said Jorgen, "We don't know for sure if this person is human or fairy, or something else, but we are not taking chances."<p>

"What about Gemini Labs?" asked Wanda, "Aren't they the ones who are responsible for taking over the city?"

"If it were all Gemini Labs," replied Jorgen, "They would only be hiding secret laboratories working on the shady side of their operations. If Gemini Labs were the true masterminds, their sole purpose would be making a profit from those who fear death. No, someone they call the 'Commander' has hired them to isolate Dimmsdale from the rest of the world. He is the real enemy we are up against."

"And this artifact the Commander wants?" asked Wanda.

"Even I do not know that," replied Jorgen, "Which begs the question as to how the Commander does."

* * *

><p>"A hidden artifact?" asked Gabriel, "Here in this city?"<p>

"I don't know what it is the Commander is after," said Dr. Alexander, "But we do have a few ideas of where it is hidden. Now that Dimmsdale is cut off from everything and everyone, we have all the resources needed to start searching every corner of the city for it."

"How are we going to find something when we don't even know what it is?" asked Gabriel.

"Trust me," said Dr. Alexander, "We'll know exactly what it is when we see it."

After finishing his sentence, the monitor on the large television behind Dr. Alexander begin to flash, meaning there was about to be another call.

"Speak of the devil," said Dr. Alexander, "and he shall appear."

Dr. Alexander accepted the call, and on the monitor was a completely black figure, devoid of any detail, save for the backlight that separated him from the background. The Commander used a voice filter that primarily sounded like a deeper female voice, but also simultaneously a darker and more threatening pitch.

"I have heard the good news," the Commander said, "I trust your search is going well so far?"

"We've just sent out retrieval teams now," replied Dr. Alexander, "We'll find the artifact before long, and we've also got a few search parties out for Trixie Tang."

"Call them off," said the Commander, "I need her out of Dimmsdale for the time being. Same goes for Talbot."

"We found Talbot?" asked Gabriel.

"Not yet," replied the Commander, "But as long as he does not directly interfere with our efforts, he is no cause for concern."

"I thought Ramsey had told Konda to..."

"Situation's changed," said the Commander, "Disregard what Ramsey previously said. Trixie and Talbot are to be left alone for the time being."

"But you said you just needed Trixie Tang for _now_," said Dr. Alexander, "How are we supposed to bring her back here when the time is right?"

"I cannot say for sure how much she is willing to risk to save her friends," replied the Commander, "As for her _father_...he is still our prisoner. As long as she believes he is still alive, she will eventually return. She has no choice."

* * *

><p>Bagmen patrolled the borders of Dimmsdale. While there were a few gaps in their line of defense, they were far and few. Trixie was hiding behind one of the many large trees that surrounded the city exits. It was too risky to go by road, so the alternative was the trails that led through various counties and a few states. Trixie realized staying Dimmsdale would only get her killed. And as concerned she was about her father and her friends (and even the school geeks who she kinda liked deeper down), she would have to find some other way to help them. The best way was to skip town and find someone who could help.<p>

She had thought about waiting until morning when, ironically, the Bagmens' numbers would drop, but in the middle of the night, a small explosion coming from across the trail caught the Bagmens' attention. A handful of them went to investigate, at which point Trixie saw an opening to get out of Dimmsdale. She was about to makes run for it when strong hands grabbed her from behind. Trixie struggled, but was spun around to see who her attacker was. Only it was not an attacker. It was her cousin Talbot, who immediately put his hand over her mouth when she attempted to scream.

"Stay calm," said Talbot, "It's just me."

Talbot was wearing a black hoodie which, like Trixie's own clothes, had been soaked by the earlier rainstorm, which had now settled down to a mere drizzle. Clearly Trixie was not the only one who wanted to remain incognito.

"What are you doing here, Talbot?" asked Trixie, "I thought you were still in Dimmsdale!"

"I was," said Talbot, "Until I learned about the raid. How are your parents?"

Trixie struggled to answer the question; it brought painful memories of her 'faithful' bodyguard Konda killing her mother, and her lecherous uncle, Talbot's father, ordering Bagmen to drag her father away to who-knows-where.

"Mom's dead," Trixie muttered bitterly, "I don't know where Daddy is."

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Talbot, "But we have more pressing matters."

"Like what?" asked Trixie.

"Depends," replied Talbot, "Is your mind made up on leaving Dimmsdale?"

Trixie never considered to think of it as leaving Dimmsdale. Abandoning her home. At least the one that wasn't raided.

"I have to," replied Trixie, "For now, at least. I know I made some mistakes with this whole thing, and since my friends and family are suffering for it, it's only fair I do something to fix it."

"It's not entirely your fault," said Talbot, "I don't know much about your quarrel with Gabriel, but as for Gemini Labs, it's their perspective employer who's responsible for all that, not you."

"You mean my uncle?" asked Trixie, "Or Gabriel's father?"

"Neither," replied Talbot, looking over his shoulder to check for any spies before continuing, "Someone worse. Someone far more dangerous than Gemini Labs could ever be. They keep talking to someone they call the 'Commander'. I don't know who he is...actually, I don't think any of them do, he's very careful about masking himself...but he's the reason Gemini Labs came here. If the Commander had not gotten involved, Gemini Labs would only be interested in profiting off of anyone with enough money to try and cheat death."

"Then what is this all about?" asked Trixie.

"From what I've gathered," replied Talbot, "the Commander hired them to cut Dimmsdale off from the rest of the world and clear out anyone who will not actively work with him on his search."

"His search?"

"He is clearly looking for something. I don't know what, but he seems to think it's here in Dimmsdale. It might, it might not, but I don't think the Commander will lose sleep over destroying lives to reach a dead end. He'll just keep trying until he finds whatever he is looking for."

"Talbot, why are you telling me all this?"

"Because unlike me, you're skipping town. I'm telling you all this because I know people who can put an end to the Commander. They're called VIGILANCE."

"Your father said you defected to them."

"He needs to check his facts. I may be helping to take down the Commander, but I am _not_ working with VIGILANCE."

"Why not?"

"I have my own reasons. But if you're serious about avenging Aunt Beatrix...you'll work with them."

"How do I find them?"

"Simple. Write a letter. Send it to someone called Ming. She can take it to the right people.

Talbot handed a crumpled sheet of paper to Trixie. It was soaked at this point, but she could still see the address written on it. When she looked up, Talbot was already running.

"Wait!" exclaimed Trixie, "Where are you going?"

"To give you an opening. Bagmen seem to be attracted to fire. So I'm going to set off a few more explosions. Trixie...be careful out there, okay?"

And with that, Talbot had disappeared from sight. More explosions came from the same direction, sending more Bagmen that way, distracting them from a certain Trixie Tang sneaking out of Dimmsdale to get help.

* * *

><p><strong>Just so you're all aware, the next chapter skips ahead to after Trixie's last appearance in "The Unraveling". At this point, she has found VIGILANCE (specifically Ming) and is on her way back to Dimmsdale.<strong>


	8. Giving the Orders

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairly Oddparents.**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Part II: Counterattack<span>**

Several weeks had passed since the raid on Tang Manor. No sign of Trixie or Talbot during that entire time. The brilliant minds of Gemini Labs couldn't seem to get a handle on where they could be. But no matter what threat they posed, they were strictly told not to look for them. The Commander himself gave the order.

Rain clouds covered the skies of Dimmsdale, with a light drizzle falling on the city. And Timmy Turner had been staring out at it from the windows of the top floor of one of the corporate buildings under Gemini Labs jurisdiction. He hadn't seen his parents in weeks. They left a note on the fridge saying they were going on vacation in Jamaica, but they wouldn't leave their son behind amidst all this chaos, would they? Maybe they would. Timmy's thoughts were interrupted by the elevator door opening, and Gabriel stepping out to sit with Timmy.

"We could use a little more light in here," Gabriel said, pulling out a remote.

When Gabriel hit one of the remote's buttons, the windows closed, changing to a holographic mural of a meadow, complete with bird sounds and a total lockout of any outside noise.

"That's my favorite part about this building," said Gabriel, sitting next to Timmy, "It's a good place to be alone."

"I didn't know this room could do that," said Timmy.

"Well now you do," added Gabriel, "And you look like you could use the break. Something bugging you?"

"How can you tell?" asked Timmy.

"You spend so much time by yourself even though we agreed this was a team effort," replied Gabriel, "It's as if you're trying to distance yourself from people around you."

"No, it's not like that," said Timmy, "It's just...I haven't seen my other friends in weeks. I thought they'd all be happy that things are finally right again. But they're nowhere to be found."

Timmy was also going to mention he missed his fairy godparents until he remembered one of the most basic rules.

"Maybe because things are _not_ finally right again," pondered Gabriel, "At least not yet."

"How is that possible?" asked Timmy, "Aren't we all finally equal?"

"Some have tried to halt our efforts," replied Gabriel, "Mainly the children of Dimmsdale's wealthy elite. I'm worried they may try to recruit your friends by..._appealing_ to their basic humanity."

"You mean like Trixie and her friends?" asked Timmy.

"You're not surprised, are you?" asked Gabriel in return, "They made themselves enemies by going against everything we stand for. They must be dealt with accordingly. Now, the adults that actually run the show are convinced to get rid of anyone who poses a threat. If your friends were to team up with the popular kids...I can't guarantee their safety."

"Their safety?" asked Timmy, "We're not going to hurt them, are we?"

"That depends on how much of a fight they put up," replied Gabriel matter-of-factly, "Or how many numbers they actually have."

"But what about my friends? And Trixie and..."

"Don't tell me you're still hung up on that girl?" asked Gabriel, "I thought you had severed all connections with her the night of the raid."

"I tried to, and...wait, what raid?" asked Timmy.

"The raid on the Tang's mansion," replied Gabriel, "You see, Ramsey wanted revenge on his brother and the Commander needs a new base of operations. Clearing out the mansion and killing that Beatrix woman accomplished both goals."

"Trixie's mom?" asked Timmy, "Y-You...killed her?"

"Well, technically Konda killed her," replied Gabriel, "He was posing as the Tang family bodyguard for years, but is actually an assassin hand-picked by the Commander himself. So when the Commander employed Gemini Labs to clear out the city, Konda naturally began working for us as well."

Timmy clearly had no idea what to think of this. As far as he was aware of, he had signed up for a movement to balance the power struggle within the walls of Dimmsdale Elementary. Now he found himself in the midst of a violent revolution that tore the city apart. Gabriel had been right when he said things were not right again, but was their current path the right one?

"I-I think I need some fresh air," stuttered Timmy, getting up from his seat.

"Take your time," replied Gabriel.

Timmy practically dashed out the doors as though the plague had broken out. Gabriel took note of that as he pulled out the same remote from before, keeping the meadow scenery up, but also pulling up a screen of the Commander. He seemed to have finally settled in Tang Manor, because the shadow-cloaked benefactor had been sitting in what appeared to be a leather desk chair from Jeffrey Tang's office.

"He's going soft on us, Commander," said Gabriel, "I think he still cares for them."

"Perhaps," said the Commander in his usual voice-filter, "But what matters is how long he can keep this city isolated from the rest of the world."

"What about Trixie?" asked Gabriel, "I know we're supposed to keep her alive, but we should have at least gotten reports of any sightings of her."

"Then it is safe to assume she found a way to leave the city," said the Commander, "Perhaps we can turn this around in our favor."

"What do you mean?"

"Trixie will not likely return alone. She will have found help. Presumably a small band of fighters so as not to draw attention to themselves. We can work with this. If they want to come back so badly, we shall let them. We shall gather them in one place and wipe them out for good."

"And Timmy?"

"Yes...it would be a shame to waste his magical abilities but we cannot jeopardize the mission by letting him use it against us. If Timmy decides to turn against us and help these vigilantes...kill him."

* * *

><p>All Fairy World officials were working around the clock over the past few weeks. They too were trying to get control of the situation in Dimmsdale. However, while the humans thought things couldn't get any worse for them, the Fairy Council suspected there would be something else on the way in a matter of time. Time that was not on their side. Jorgen led the operations involving the current crisis in Dimmsdale...why it had disappeared off the maps, who the Commander was, and most importantly, what he was searching for. Jorgen had a separate team peruse old archives in the giant, spacious library of Fairy World, trying to get tabs on what magical artifacts were in their possession and which ones were hidden somewhere in the human world. Another team had put together a diagram with a list of suspects of the Commander's identity. The list was narrowed quite a bit to those who have knowledge of magical properties, whether they were supposed to know it or not, as well as anyone who may hold a grudge. Denzel Crocker, Remy Buxaplenty, Juandissimo, Norm the Genie, and the Pixies were all just a handful of suspects on the board. Jorgen himself was in the central plaza of Fairy World, discussing a certain matter with Cosmo and Wanda, the former of whom was also occupied with Poof.<p>

"I have good news and bad news, puny fairies," boasted Jorgen.

"Does it have to do with Timmy?" asked Wanda.

"Yes," replied Jorgen, "One of the spies I sent to monitor Dimmsdale has returned with some startling information. The good news is that Timmy Turner is beginning to realize he is fighting for the wrong side."

"Wonderful!" exclaimed Wanda, "But wait, what's the bad news?"

"The bad news is that his sudden epiphany has placed his life in danger," replied Jorgen, "The Commander suspects he will betray them, and has ordered them to kill Timmy should he turn against them."

"Oh no!" cried Cosmo and Wanda, almost dropping Poof.

"We've got to help him!" cried Wanda.

"Alas, I am afraid that is impossible, puny fairies," Jorgen grimly stated, "A direct order has been given that all magical beings leave Earth until we stop the Commander, and only the officer who gave the order can nullify it."

"Didn't_ you _give that order?" asked Wanda.

"Oh, eh heh, I must have forgotten," Jorgen replied, nervously scratching the back of his neck, "Very well, I will allow you to rescue Timmy Turner, on the condition that once you get him out safely, you bring him here to Fairy World and remain here until we stop the Commander for good.

And with that, Cosmo and Wanda left Poof in the care of Jorgen, who still did not know how handle babies and ordered a subordinate to change his diaper, to find and protect their fairy godchild.


	9. Search and Rescue

The harsh rain had settled into a light drizzle by the time Timmy had made his way to the park. It was still gray and cloudy in the skies and rather humid all around. Timmy didn't bother to notice any of this, though. He still had his head wrapping around the fact that he had indirectly assisted with the massive takeover of Dimmsdale and the death of Trixie's mom. His friends were betrayed. His family was nowhere to be seen. But worst of all, his fairy godparents had warned him about the consequences of the kind of wish he made, but he still did not listen. As soon as they returned to him, Timmy vowed to immediately undo the wish. Until then, he had to figure something out on his own.

"It's him," he heard someone say from behind him.

The person's voice was faint and raspy, but did not sound much older than Timmy. Sure enough, when he turned around, he saw two kids his age sitting on an aged park bench that had long since been cleaned. They were wearing dress shirts, albeit untucked and dirty all over, one of them even had a hole. Their shirts were unbuttoned about halfway, and their hair had been sticking up all over. In fact, without their flashy purple jackets and shades, the two former co-presidents were virtually unrecognizable.

"Tad? Chad?" asked a surprised Timmy.

"I see he bothered to remember our names," said Chad.

"I suppose you're happy, though," said Tad, "Now that you and your best bud Gabriel are at the top and everyone else is miserable."

"He's...he's not my friend," said Timmy.

"Oh, _really_?" asked Chad, taking the usual condescending tone he once had, "If I remember correctly, you could never stop rushing to the guy's defense."

"You were basically his personal cheerleader," said Tad, "And that got you at the top. You may be happy, but do you have any idea how the rest of us have lived ever since those bag-things took everyone away?"

Timmy should have had no reason to care. These were the popular kids. Or at least they were. They made school a living hell for kids like him. But deep down, Timmy was not a bad person. He cared enough to listen to their tale of plight.

"You didn't care enough to stop them from killing Trixie's mom and taking their mansion," Chad ranted, "Or from taking her dad away. Did you know that's what they did to our parents? Rob them of their assets and lock them away in who-knows-where? And Veronica and a bunch of the other kids...the ones we _thought_ were your friends...they were taken too. We barely managed to escape, but we definitely got beaten and bruised by those freaks in bags."

"Those things aren't human," Tad said, "And they definitely aren't..."

"Speak of the devil," came a voice from behind, "An' he shall appear."

The three kids turned to see an Asian man in combat gear leading Bagmen straight in their direction. The Bagmen appeared restless while the human, whom Tad and Chad recognized as Konda, was completely at ease. Even with the machine gun in his possession.

"You're Trixie's bodyguard!" exclaimed Tad and Chad simultaneously.

"No he's not," Timmy said, "He's a mercenary. He's the one who killed Trixie's mom!"

"I see another reason Timmy Turner should have been higher in th' food chain than th' likes of those two," Konda said, "You're th' _smart_ one. Yet _not_ smart enough to stay on Gabriel's good side."

Tad and Chad were clearly shocked by Konda's southern accent. Timmy, on the other hand, while he had never met Konda nor heard him speak, was fully aware his prim and proper tone from before Gemini Labs took over was all an act. A very carefully crafted and executed act at that.

"It's an honor to meet th' famed fairy boy," said Konda, "I am truly sorry for havin' to kill you for your crimes."

Within a flash, the Bagmen had surrounded Tad and Chad, who tried to run away, but were pinned down. The Bagmen proceeded to relentlessly kick the two boys wherever and whenever the opportunity presented itself, which was quite frequently. No amount of effort could stop Tad and Chad from puking up blood from getting too many blows to the stomach.

"Wait! Stop!" Timmy cried.

"It's too late for that," Konda said, aiming his weapon at Timmy, "Now, we have someone to visit, and I very much think you'd rather be there without a body full of lead. So don't you worry about those two...you just keep movin'."

* * *

><p>Jorgen immediately appeared in the center of the Fairy World Archives, sending nearly every nearby sheet of loose paper flying with his booming entrance. The tiny fairy librarian he was there to see had almost lost his cap from Jorgen's entrance.<p>

"You said you had news for me," said Jorgen.

"Well, it's both good news and bad news," the librarian replied, adjusting his over-sized eyeglasses, "The bad news is we still have no identity on the Commander. If he turns out to be human, I'd _love_ to study how he hides himself from our fairy surveillance teams."

"Then what is the good news?" asked Jorgen, "And it better not be one of those 'At least we're not dead' types of good news!"

"Better," the librarian replied timidly, "After careful research and using the process of elimination...we know which artifact the Commander is seeking. And we can confirm that is is indeed hidden somewhere in Dimmsdale. Actually, it was _because_ we narrowed our search down to Dimmsdale that we were able to figure out which artifact it was to begin with."

"That actually _is_ good news," Jorgen said, finally smiling for the first time since the Gemini crisis started.

"Not when you learn _which_ artifact he is after," the librarian replied.

The librarian held up a worn-out book, opened on an equally worn-out and dusty page. Jorgen leaned in closer to see the sketch of the artifact in question, along with its description. Almost immediately, his usually tan skin turned pale.

"This...this cannot be!" he exclaimed, "The Fairy Council had this sealed away thousands of years ago!"

"That's what I had thought as well," the librarian replied, "But once I learned what it was...I began to feel it. It's still active. It knows what's going on in the worlds around it. Whatever magic the Fairy Council used, it seems to have only contained the artifact rather than permanently destroy it."

"Then this is now officially a top-priority crisis," Jorgen said, once again resuming his serious and gruff demeanor, "We can NEVER allow it to be released into any world. Finding the artifact is now your ONLY priority! No one in this library rests until it is found! And when it is, I want the entire army sent down to guard it from the Commander. He must NOT get his hands on it!"

"And what are you going to do, sir?" the librarian asked.

With his back turned, Jorgen replied, "It won't be easy, but...I'm going to the Fairy Council and do what I can to get answers out of them. They can be a very stubborn bunch. They may not want to be very open with me once they learn their greatest failure was their inability to seal away our most dangerous foe."

* * *

><p>Timmy, at gunpoint, had been pushed into the lobby of the Gemini Labs established in Dimmsdale. There were no lights on. There didn't need to be. Unlike most of Gemini's locations, this lab's lobby had been surrounded by windows, so the moonlight presented all the light needed in the lobby. Bagmen followed behind them. It didn't take long for them to drag Tad and Chad to wherever they had been keeping the rest of their prisoners. Konda told Timmy to halt about halfway through the room, while Konda himself proceeded forward. As he walked up the stairs to the balcony, Gabriel had entered from that same floor, leaning both his hands on the balcony railing. Several armed soldiers were lined up next to him and Konda, presumably local feds who were intimidated into Gemini Lab's servitude.<p>

"And here I thought we were friends," Gabriel said.

He didn't seem agitated by Timmy's betrayal. Rather, he appeared to be amused.

"Some friend you turned out to be!" Timmy shouted, "I should have listened to Trixie the night she warned me about you!"

"Ah, but you didn't," Gabriel said, "And thanks to that, our community has become much more progressive, paving the way towards true equality."

"Cut the bullshit!" Timmy shouted back, "You don't give a damn about equality! You don't even care about being progressive! All you want is to be at the top! You didn't change the system at all! You hardly even fixed it! You just took out one group of assholes and put yourself in their place! You _want_ the whole system to be a pyramid! You _want_ to oppress others, no matter what lies come out of your mouth!"

"Harsh words for someone who helped place me there," said Gabriel, "If I recall, I was put here through a democratic process. I didn't _take_ power! You _gave _it to me! And you did so for the sole purpose of knocking the 'in' crowd down a peg or two."

"Knocking them down a peg means making them wait in line just like every other kid, or not being able to buy passing grades," Timmy retorted, "NOT killing them or locking them away for their 'crimes'!"

"Oh, but Timmy, Timmy, didn't you _want_ nothing but bad things to happen to them?" asked Gabriel, "Didn't you _wish_ for them to suffer?"

Both Timmy and Konda looked at Gabriel in surprise. Konda though Gabriel was talking nonsense, but Timmy knew exactly what he was talking about.

"How...how do you know about that?" asked Timmy.

"About your fairy godparents?" asked Gabriel smugly, "We know more than you can possibly imagine."

"You mean _you_ know," Konda said, "What kind of talk is that, anyway? Goin' on about magic and wishes an' all that junk?"

"I'm sorry, are you paid to think, or are you paid to kill?" asked Gabriel, shutting Konda down.

Gabriel then proceeded to lift his hand, motioning for Konda and the soldiers to ready their weapons.

"Ready!" shouted Konda.

"You were such a fascinating boy, Timmy," Gabriel said.

"Aim!" shouted Konda.

Konda and the soldiers aimed their weapons at Timmy Turner, all prepared to fire at once.

"Farewell, old friend," Gabriel said.

"Fire!"

Timmy closed his eyes and bent down with his hands over his head, preparing for the worst. At the very least, it would be over quick. But he felt no such pain. He didn't feel an end. Instead, when he opened his eyes, a majestic light had surrounded him, shielding him from the incoming bullets, redirecting them through the Bagmen, filling them with holes.

"Oh shit! No!" growled Gabriel, "Konda! Take cover! Don't look at those creatures!"

In the future, Konda would be grateful he did not question Gabriel during this moment. He would have died there if he did. He followed Gabriel down to the ground, keeping his eyes closed and his face peeled to the ground, not witnessing what had been happening. The bags on the Bagmen had all fallen to the ground. As the legends were told, there were no men inside. No human period. Nothing but a void. Nightmarish creatures, with no solid form to touch, emerged from the Bagmen. Their true forms, these ghostly figures, had seen the soldiers looking at them. The soldiers were shaking in their boots, some trying in vain to shoot them down, others dropping their weapons altogether and running towards the door. Neither method was successful. The creatures charged towards each soldier, filling their heads with the darkest nightmares that could emerge from their subconscious, driving each and every soldier mad enough to end their own lives with whatever weapon they could find, though some found it more relieving to jump from the balcony without landing on their feet, deliberately breaking their own skulls.

During all this chaos, Timmy looked up at the source of the bright light that had protected him. Three fairies, one with pink hair, one with green hair, and one with only one tooth, had cast their magic around him. Timmy had never been so happy to see them in his entire life.

"Cosmo! Wanda! Poof!"

"Hang on, sport!" Wanda said with a smile, "We're getting you out of here!"

As quickly as they had arrived, the fairies and Timmy had vanished, along with the light that had been cast in the very center of the lobby. Gabriel and Konda got up to look at the damage done. They saw the windows had all shattered, the Bagmen leaving their suits behind, and every soldier with either a bullet through their heads or a smashed skull.

"What th'...What th' HELL JUST HAPPENED?" asked Konda.

"That, Konda," said Gabriel, "was the magic and wishes you were so quick to mock earlier. I suppose for someone as street smart as yourself, you're quite ignorant of the supernatural."

"Now wait just a goddamn minute, boy!" Konda said, pointing his gun at Gabriel with his back turned, "I only work for th' Commander! Nobody else! Not yer father, not Ramsey, and especially not a cocky little child! Don't think I'm not aware of yer little secrets! I know what you are. What you and your father _both_ are! I don't take orders from a SHADOW!"

For the first time ever, Gabriel had not been calm. He turned around, and Konda could clearly see he pushed a few of the wrong buttons. For the first time, Gabriel was angry.

"Who are you calling a shadow?!" roared Gabriel, "Do you think you can talk to _me_ that way as you want?! Do you have any idea what I could do to you were the Commander _not_ to forbid me from doing so?!"

After a moment of dead silence that seemed to be longer than it actually was, Gabriel calmed down as Konda lowered his weapon.

"You would be wise to refrain from that in the future," Gabriel said, "Now I'm going to get a clean up crew to dispose of these soldiers. You call the Commander and ask about a contingency plan...what to do now that Turner has escaped."


	10. Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen

In the center of the woods, a bright light had emitted from the ground. Up from the light came Timmy Turner with his fairy godparents. It was still nighttime, and the trees were all covered in shadow by the time the light had disappeared. But Timmy wasn't paying attention to this. He was too happy to see his godparents!

"Cosmo! Wanda! It's really you!" Timmy exclaimed.

"Aw, we missed you, too, sport!" Wanda said.

"Group hug, everyone!" Cosmo said.

It was the first time in a while Cosmo didn't have a stupid idea. The four of them, Poof included, wrapped their arms around each other for said group hug. Once they broke the hug, however, it seemed as though it was all business again.

"Perfect timing!" Timmy said, "Now, I know you said that everything that's happened wasn't because of that wish I made months ago..."

"Unfortunately, yes," Wanda replied.

"But that doesn't mean we can't stop it!" proclaimed Timmy, "Cosmo, Wanda, I wish Gemini Labs was gone for good!"

Cosmo and Wanda lifted their wands, the glowing sparks from the stars emitting, only to grow limp and die down. The usual 'whoopee-cushion' sound that could be heard when magic died echoed through the stillness of the woods.

"What's going on?" asked Timmy.

"I was worried about this," Wanda replied, "Whatever the Commander's using to keep Dimmsdale isolated is blocking our magic!"

"He can do that?" asked Timmy.

"It's worse than that, sport," replied Wanda, "The Commander knows about us."

"He knows about fairy magic?" asked Timmy.

"Well, yes, but more specifically, he knows about myself and Cosmo," replied Wanda, "He knows we're your fairy godparents."

"And Jorgen didn't take you away from me?" asked a surprised Timmy.

"He's...got a lot more on his plate at the moment," replied Wanda.

* * *

><p>'A lot more' was the understatement of the year. Jorgen had been less stressed during the Darkness crisis and Crocker's brief takeover of Fairy World. Now he had already felt an anxious burning in his upper body, having traveled all the way up to the Fairy Council. All of them, with hoods over their faces, had listened to Jorgen's recap of what had been occurring thus far.<p>

"And you're sure this...Commander is not one of our own?" asked the pink one.

"We still don't know who or what the Commander is," Jorgen replied, "Only what he is seeking to attain. Something the Fairy Council should have completely destroyed years ago!"

"Impossible," the purple one stated matter-of-factly, "Our magic is the strongest in all the worlds. No threat to us could possibly survive our magic."

"Then how do you explain this?" asked Jorgen, holding up the aged paper with the information on the artifact. It was vague, but the Fairy Council recognized it.

"What is this artifact?" asked Jorgen, "What is...the Heart With Wings?"

* * *

><p>"Long story short, Timmy," Wanda said, "Jorgen's going to be dealing with the Fairy Council for a while. Which means those of us still in the human world are all that we've got."<p>

"Is this really it?" asked Timmy, "Just the four of us? There's no one else who can help?"

"Actually," came a voice from the trees, "There is."

Timmy jumped in surprise when he saw a tall figure emerge from the woods. Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof disappeared from sight, taking the forms of colored pins on Timmy's shirt as Talbot Tang approached Timmy.

"No need to hide from me, fairies," said Talbot, "I'm a friend."

"You're...Trixie's cousin," Timmy said, "I heard about you through school gossip."

"Name's Talbot," he replied, "And I'm here for the same purpose as you."

Timmy had not formally met Talbot until now, but as he looked over the towering figure near him, he saw a familiar warmth in his eyes. The same kind that everyone in Trixie's family (save for Ramsey) all had.

"It's okay, guys," Timmy told his godparents, "I think we can trust him."

Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof reappeared, floating in between the two humans.

"I'm Cosmo!"

"And I'm Wanda!"

"And we're..."

"Timmy's fairy godparents," Talbot answered, "I know. I managed to get that much out of Gabriel and his father before everything went to shit."

"You know about what happened?" asked Timmy.

"Of course I do," replied Talbot, "But we can discuss things more formally once I get you out of here?"

"And go where?" asked Timmy, "Dimmsdale's been taken over!"

"There is a group called VIGILANCE dedicated to fighting against the works of Gemini Labs," replied Talbot, "And there are a few of them here for that same purpose. Including someone we both know well."

"Who?"

"Follow me, and you can meet her," replied Talbot, leading Timmy through the woods.

* * *

><p>All Veronica felt as she started to wake up was a recurring headache she had only started getting ever since she was placed in captivity. Today, though, there was an additional feeling of mild nausea. That may have been chalked up to the musty smell of a brig, but it had not seemed to bother her stomach before. Veronica's clothes had long been dirtied since she had been "arrested" for "crimes" against Gemini Labs. Her skirt had been ripped on one side, though not enough to expose anything over her thighs. Her ordinarily white sweatshirt had been darkened by prison dust, so she had abandoned it in favor of the sleeveless blue tank top she always wore underneath. And unlike before, her hair was not in a ponytail. Though her signature star-shaped hairpin was still in her head, the ponytail had turned into messy strands of hair that fell to the side of her face. On this night, Veronica awoke to hear the doors of wherever she was being held open, with two figures, one tall and one small, leading two smaller figures inside.<p>

"Place them across from the cheerleader," said Dr. Alexander.

Veronica looked out from her cell door to see Tad and Chad, beaten, bloody, and blindfolded, dragged by Gabriel (he had surprising strength) into the cell directly across from Veronica. Gabriel only removed their blindfolds once he was close enough to the door to quickly hop out when his father locked the former co-presidents inside. Next to these cells were other familiar faces; A.J and Chester, Timmy's best friends, as well as his parents. There was also Tootie, his obsessive stalker, and Missy, a new girl who Timmy had taken interest in a while back. Oddly enough, Crocker was locked in here as well, though he looked as though he was more aware of himself than he had normally been.

"Gabriel, you rotten weasel!" A.J screamed, "We trusted you!"

"_You_ trusted him," Veronica said in return, "_Some_ of us knew he was no good from the moment he arrived."

"And you speak of me as though I were not present," Gabriel said.

Chester moaned, saying, "I didn't think I'd miss having Tad and Chad as co-presidents."

"You...still think this is about something as trivial as school hierarchy?" asked Gabriel inquisitively, "No, this is about more. _Much_ more."

"Gabriel..." Dr. Alexander said.

"Sorry," Gabriel replied, "But I've waited a _long_ time to brag about how badly these kids were played for fools."

"Yeah," Veronica mumbled sarcastically, "We're going to admit being deceived by a prissy English cheater."

Veronica didn't mumble quietly enough. Her words were within earshot of Gabriel, and his usual calm that had just recently been broken by Timmy Turner's escape was once again broken by Veronica's statement. Gabriel opened Veronica's cell door and approached her angrily. To everyone's shock, the once diplomatic and serene Gabriel had viciously grabbed Veronica and threw her on the floor, savagely kicking her all over her body. Veronica wanted to cry from the intense pain, but she didn't want to give Gabriel any further satisfaction of having power over her. She thought Trixie wouldn't break, and neither would she. Not even as her head pumped further and her body consistently met the receiving end of Gabriel's kicks.

Tad and Chad were all too familiar with this treatment at the hands of the Bagmen, but the others were first-time witnesses to Gemini Labs' cruelty. Especially the girls. Tootie and Missy now felt pity for the girl on the other side of the social spectrum. But while Tootie sat in a corner crying her eyes out, wishing for this nightmare to end, Missy screamed out in an attempt to make it stop.

"Stop it!" Missy screamed, "You're hurting her!"

To everyone's surprise, her pleas did not reach deaf ears. Dr. Alexander whistled loudly to get Gabriel's attention.

"That's enough, Gabriel," he said.

Gabriel had stopped attacking Veronica, panting heavily before wiping sweat from his eyebrows and regaining his composure, locking Veronica's cell door behind her.

"You'll have to excuse the boy," Dr. Alexander said, "He's actually quite sensitive, though he did a fantastic job masking it while under the guise of one of your fellow students."

With that much, everyone agreed.

"Now, here's how this is going to play out," he continued, "This particular prison is unknown to most people. In fact, even we would not know of it's existence if our employer had not led us here. Now it's just a few small numbers who are aware of this location, and this is where you will all stay, locked away and unable to interfere with our employer's operations."

"W-who's your employer?" asked Tootie mid-sob.

"Ah, four eyes finally speaks up after days of crying like a baby!" Gabriel exclaimed, "How about next, you learn to keep your trap shut!"

"Manners, Gabriel," Dr. Alexander said, reprimanding his son, "But in answer to your question...beats the hell out of me. All I know is he's provided some previously unimaginable intel that has changed the face of our work."

"Like the kind that allows bags to move on their own and take over the town?" asked Crocker, "That can only be the work of...FAIRY. GOD. PARENTS!"

_Yikes!_ thought Gabriel, _Very close!_

"Seriously?" asked Veronica, still unimpressed with her teacher's eccentric behavior, "More crap about fairies?"

"You wouldn't call it crap if you truly saw them," Gabriel replied, "They may very well have saved Timmy Turner's life."

"Timmy's alive?" asked an overjoyed Tootie.

"Where is he?" asked Mr. Turner.

"Where is our son?" asked Mrs. Turner.

"Okay, okay, kiddos, you're all obviously very excited," said Gabriel, "But let's keep the questions to a minimum, shall we?"

"Alas," Dr. Alexander replied, "I can't honestly tell you. Until he betrayed us, we had our eyes on him at all times. Now, thanks to the intervention of those fairies...we have no idea where he is."

"What about Trixie?" asked Veronica, "What happened to _her_?"

"If it's Trixie you're worried about, don't be," replied Dr. Alexander, "She escaped several weeks ago and has not been seen since."

"Though she may change her mind once she learns of a very _special_ prisoner," Gabriel said.

At the very end of the prison was a lone cell, the darkest of them all. Inside was none other than Jeffrey Tang, Trixie's father. His usually combed hair was sticking out in strands, and had grown a beard during his time in captivity. He didn't speak much during this time, but he knew his captors were still pursuing his only daughter.

_Trixie_, he thought, _Please be okay._


	11. Family Reunion

The trees had gown darker as the night wore on, and only the sounds of dry leaves could be heard as Talbot Tang led Timmy Turner and his godparents through the woods.

"Where exactly are we going?" asked Timmy.

"To someone who's been waiting to see you," replied Talbot.

"And that would be...?"

"You should know that much already," replied Talbot, "She's been wondering about you ever since the Bagmen cleared everyone out."

"Who has?"

Talbot cleared away a large web of moss that they had approached, revealing the campsite Talbot had been leading them to. Most of the tents set up were about average size, they could probably fit around three or four people, but the red tent in the very center stood out among them. A light fire had been set up in the center, having started to die down. The smoke that was made from the fire made its way out through a small hole in the trees above. Yes, the trees here curved into each other, with only a small opening to provide natural light to go in and the smoke to go out. It was one of the primary reasons VIGILANCE had selected this spot to rendezvous, as it allowed them to remain well hidden from anyone they didn't want finding them. At this point, Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof, unsure if anyone at this site knew the existence of fairies (save for Talbot), turned themselves into pins on Timmy's shirt that looked like boy scout stickers. None of the VIGILANCE agents that were walking by questioned Talbot as he brought this new stranger into their hideout.

"You've been here this whole time?" asked Timmy.

"Well, no," replied Talbot, leading them towards the red tent, "I have my reasons for not working with VIGILANCE in the past, but thanks to Trixie, they were persuaded to place me in charge of this operation."

"Trixie's here?" Timmy excitedly asked.

"Why wouldn't she? It was her idea to find you."

Talbot opened the tent, revealing a few cots with a couple tables for both paperwork and equipment. Inside at the moment were two women, one older and one younger. The older one was quite tall for an Asian woman, and also had short jet-black hair that went to her shoulders. The younger one was wearing a familiar looking sweatshirt with jeans, but without a red cap. Her hair flowed freely as she stepped up and turned around to see the newcomer.

"Trixie?"

"Timmy?"

* * *

><p>On the twelfth floor of the Gemini offices, Ramsey sat back in his leather chair pouring himself a class of champagne. He kept the office windows open to show the view of the city from his height. Even in these dark times, the night lights in Dimmsdale gave a certain beauty to the city. Ramsey decided he could get used to this sight. As he sat drinking champagne looking out the window, he failed to hear a series of footsteps walking towards him. He didn't know Konda had walked in until he felt his chair being turned around.<p>

"Enjoyin' yerself?" he asked.

Ramsey's stomach dropped as he saw Konda in front of him.

"Oh, ah, Konda! I wasn't expecting you here until later!"

"Situation's changed a bit, Konda said, "Th' Commander wants a word."

"Oh sure, I'll, uh, I'll get to that in a second," Ramsey hesitantly replied.

Ramsey only had time to take one small sip out of his champagne glass before Konda twisted Ramsey's arm behind his back.

"He would rather speak _now_," Konda said again.

Ramsey stopped fighting Konda's grip, prompting the latter to let go of him just as the silhouette of the Commander appeared on the nearby screen.

"It looks as though you've been relishing your new resources, Ramsey," the Commander said.

That was quite the understatement. Prior to the past few events, the room was plain white. Now it was painted bright lavender with gold arches. A small fountain had been mounted in the wall, and of course, large portraits, the largest of which was of Ramsey himself, had been placed on the walls not occupied by the fountain or the windows. Ramsey had certainly been splurging with his new resources.

"Yes, thanks for noticing," Ramsey said, "I figured now that I'm at the top for once, I would enjoy luxuries my brother always hoarded for himself."

"And in doing so, you have become your brother," the Commander said.

"Eh...pardon?"

"Tell me, Ramsey...why have you not attempted to find your son or your niece?"

"Y-You said yourself to stop searching for them!"

"Perhaps," the Commander responded, "But that still does not change the fact that you have relinquished your duties to the mission."

"What mission?" asked Ramsey, getting agitated, "The mission is complete! Gemini Labs has taken over town, and the power has been turned to our favor!"

"I should have guessed you would not remain loyal once you had your riches...you fat _pig_."

Now Ramsey was getting anxious, feeling something drop in the pit of his stomach. The Commander never used such mundane insults unless he had been truly angry.

"Excuse me? What does that mean?"

"It means you are long overdue for atoning for your past sins. For the murder of Norlene!"

"W-Wait, what? How did you..."

"Goodbye, Ramsey."

Ramsey had no time to comprehend what was going on. The bullet fired from Konda's trusty revolver had pierced the back of his head before he could respond, leaving just an empty shell.

"What did you mean by 'Norlene', Commander?" asked Konda.

"That is not your concern," replied the Commander, resuming his usual calm, "What _is_ your concern is getting a clean-up crew in here to dispose of the body. I want this room cleared out completely before our public announcement.

"Which announcement is that?"

"Ever since we captured Jeffrey Tang, I've contemplated ways to use him to bring Trixie and her merry band of misfits _back_ to Dimmsdale. Now, after careful consideration...I know just how we can do that."

* * *

><p>"Trixie!" Timmy exclaimed, "Oh man, it's really great to see you!"<p>

In one second, Trixie was standing in front of him. The next, he felt her hand slap his face, both of which had still been surprisingly delicate considering what they both had been though the past several weeks.

"THAT'S for leaving when we needed you most!" Trixie shouted.

Timmy was nothing short of shocked. Even if he hadn't been on speaking terms with her the last time they spoke in his backyard, he didn't think she could be so monumentally pissed at him. At least not enough to slap him.

"Well," muttered Talbot, "Wasn't expecting _that_."

Trixie brought her arms forward again, leaving Timmy to flinch, bracing himself for more brutal slaps. Instead, he felt his head being pulled in, her soft lips planting themselves onto his own. Since Trixie's eyes were closed, she couldn't see the further shock in Timmy's eyes. It was a good long few seconds before she broke the kiss.

"THAT'S for coming back."

"Wasn't expecting _that_, either," Talbot remarked.

"Now I'm _really_ confused," Timmy said.

"Timmy...I won't lie to you," Trixie replied (as if she had a choice), "When my mom was murdered, I was really angry with you for leaving us. For leaving me. I couldn't understand why you would turn your back on everything you cared for."

"I don't either, Trixie," Timmy said morosely, "Gabriel...just really spoke out to me."

"And that was the whole problem. But I'm equally responsible as well. I voted for him, too."

"Wait...really? _You_ voted for Gabriel? Why?"

"Because while what he's done is inexcusable and unforgivable, he was right about one thing; the barriers between our social statuses has to end. That's why I'm helping now. Not just to get back at them for what they did to..."

Trixie suddenly started to choke up, unable to finish her sentence. Timmy instinctively pulled her into a warm hug, allowing Trixie's tears to fall freely onto his shoulders.

"I'm sorry...it still hurts," she sobbed, "But I swear to you, Timmy, no matter what my friends say, and even if I fail to get my family's assets back...I won't ignore you anymore. You will be treated like any decent human being. And if anyone has a problem with that, they have a problem with me."

"Wow...thanks! You have no idea how amazing it feels to hear you say that," Timmy said, releasing Trixie from his embrace.

"It was _long_ overdue," Trixie remarked.

"Ahem...while I hate to interrupt this touching moment..."

This came from the other woman that had been sitting next to Trixie just moments ago. Timmy didn't realize how tall she really was until she stood up just now.

"Oh...sorry, Ming," Trixie said.

"Oh right, I forgot to mention you," Talbot said.

"And you are...?" Timmy asked.

"Ming," she replied, "And while I always fought against Gemini Labs, now it's become personal."

"Why?"

In the mere two seconds between his inquiry and her response, Timmy had already made the connection in his head. The closeness between herself and Trixie. The aura of elegance that emitted from Tang women. Most importantly, the similar facial structure of Trixie's mother.

"Beatrix was my sister," replied Ming.

"Ming's your aunt?" Timmy asked Trixie, "How did you find each other?"

Before Ming or Trixie could respond, one of the VIGILANCE agents came running in, holding a transmitter the size of an iPad in his hands. He had evidently been in a great rush to get here, judging by the sweat running down his face and the heavy breathing coming from his body.

"You guys need to hear this!" he exclaimed, "The Commander is sending out a transmission!"

"Looks like storytime will have to wait," Ming replied.

The agent gave Talbot the transmitter as Timmy, Trixie, and Ming gathered around him.

"It is time our enemies realized the futility of their situation," the Commander transmitted.

"And how do you propose we do that?" Dr. Alexander had transmitted from another end.

"By making an example of their own," the Commander replied, "Our special prisoner, Jeffrey Tang, is to be brought to the Dimmsdale Mall for our public display."

"D-Dad?"

"Send word to all; Jeffrey Tang is sentenced to be executed at this time tomorrow evening."


	12. Reflections of Kindred Spirits

Timmy (with Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof as pins on his shirt still) was listening in with Trixie, Talbot, Ming, and the VIGILANCE agent who brought in the transmission device. All were listening in on the call between the Commander and Dr. Alexander...the former of whom had just sentenced Trixie's father to death at what was once the Dimmsdale Mall.

"Executing Mr. Tang at the mall, eh?" Dr. Alexander pondered, "Sounds intriguing. But what about you? Will you be in attendance?"

"I will be watching from the safety of my quarters here in Tang Manor," the Commander replied, "In the meantime, have the Bagmen guard the portal to the prison. We do not need this event interrupted, nor will I risk them stopping me from finding the Heart."

"The Heart?" Ming asked.

"What's the Heart?" asked Talbot, looking to Ming.

"Your guess is as good as mine," replied Ming, "But whatever it is, it's definitely the reason the Commander is doing all this."

Dr. Alexander continued the transmission by asking, "And what of the other prisoners?"

"As long as Jeffrey Tang is securely brought to the execution site, the other prisoners are of no concern to me," the Commander replied wickedly, "You and your son may do with them as you wish."

The transmission ended, leaving the eavesdroppers to look on in horror. They had a pretty good idea of what kind of things Dr. Alexander and Gabriel would do to their friends, but they still knew it would probably be worse than anything they imagined.

"Well what are we waiting for?" Trixie asked, "We have to save my dad!"

"But we can't just rush in!" Ming exclaimed, "We need a plan! Didn't you hear the part about the Bagmen guarding the manor? Our numbers alone cannot stand against those things!"

"But we do have a slight advantage," Talbot replied, "Timmy here was spared of Gemini's fury by certain...supernatural means. Care to show us?"

Timmy didn't have to. Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof all appeared as their normal forms in the middle of the circle that had been formed. While Trixie and the other nameless agents were shocked, Ming was only mildly surprised.

"Wait, fairies are actually real?" asked Trixie, "Crocker really isn't that crazy?"

"I see," Ming observed, "If we have them, the Bagmen have less leverage over us average humans."

"Well, we'd like to take credit," Wanda said, ignoring Cosmo's less-than-subtle 'I saved the day' dance, "but all we did was transport Timmy out of town. It was the firing squad that caused the Bagmen to go berserk."

"In any case, it may protect us from long term damage," Ming noted.

"Which also mans the best course of action is to divide and conquer," Talbot said."

"What do you mean?" Trixie asked.

"Based on the transmission we intercepted, there are two main areas of interest for tomorrow's execution; the actual execution site at Dimmsdale Mall, and Tang Manor...where the Commander himself is hiding out."

"You think we can take him down by going to the Manor?" asked Ming.

"We can if we split up into teams," replied Talbot, "One team, consisting of myself, my cousin, and Timmy, goes to Tang Manor to find this 'portal' to wherever Uncle Jeffrey is being held. The other team, consisting of Ming and the other VIGILANCE agents, goes directly to the execution site in case the first team fails. That way, even if the first team doesn't find the portal, we can find, at the very least, where the Commander is hiding."

"...I dunno," Trixie said, unsure of herself, "What if our team fails the mission? I don't know if I could handle being responsible for losing my dad."

Not even Talbot had an idea for this one. As smart as he was, he was not used to failure. Temporary setbacks, maybe, but not actual failure. Timmy, who had been deep in thought for a moment, had actually come up with a solution.

"I have an idea!" Timmy exclaimed, "Cosmo, Wanda, I wish if Trixie can't find her dad at the mansion, she's automatically teleported to the mall with the other team!"

Cosmo and Wanda waved their wands, and with a bling, the wish was granted.

"Oh thank you, Timmy!" Trixie cried, wrapping him in a hug and twirling the smaller boy around, "I like your fairies already!"

"Strange, though," Wanda said, "Last time you made a wish, our wands did the thing..."

"Yeah, you know," Cosmo interjected, "That whoopee cushion noise when there's no magic!"

"...but this wish went just fine!"

"Whatever the case," Talbot replied, "At least not we have a plan. All we need to do now is wait until morning to strike. For now, we'd better reset up while we can."

As the meeting was adjourned and everyone left to do their own thing, Wanda still pondered over the selective success of Timmy's wishes.

_The only way one wish could be granted and another could not, aside from breaking Da Rules,_ Wanda thought, _is if there was another, stronger magic working against us. Just what is the Commander after?_

* * *

><p><em>It had been a couple weeks before Timmy's betrayal and subsequent escape from Gemini Labs. Trixie had paid a visit to Z, the VIGILANCE agent who she had sought out when she first escaped Dimmsdale, the one who had given her a place to stay while she laid low. Where she first met Ming, who had been interrogating a grouchy blonde girl for information on one of Gemini Lab's most prominent individuals. To the best of her memory, his name was Errol, but that was not her primary concern. Her concern was Ming, who had approached her shortly after her interrogation session, instantly recognizing her as her niece, filling her in on her relation to Beatrix Tang. This alone was the push Trixie needed to go back to Dimmsdale and face the Commander. After bidding Z goodbye with a grateful kiss, Trixie exited the hospital in the late hours of night. The only lights were those coming from the hospital and from the old but well-furnished Nismo waiting for her outside. The owner of the car, Ming, was waiting outside, leaning on her newly painted vehicle.<em>

_"You ready?" Ming asked._

_"Yes, I'm ready," Trixie replied._

_Trixie got in the passenger seat as Ming began the drive back to Dimmsdale. It was a half hour before they went from the city lights, to the suburban half of town, to the wide, empty road with trees and forests accompanying each side. Once they were the only ones on the road, Ming finally broke the silence._

_"We drive until we reach the city limit of Shelbyville," she said, "After that, we'll have to walk on foot to the rendezvous point. Hope you can handle that."_

_"I've ween wondering on my own for weeks," Trixie morbidly replied, "I've had time to adjust to inadequate living standards."_

_Another awkward silence followed before Trixie decided to prod Ming for what was really on her mind._

_"So...you and my mom..."_

_"Yes, we've been over this," Ming said, "We were sisters. That makes you my niece, which means it's the only reason I'm letting a child work with me."_

_"...so I'm just unwanted baggage to you?"_

_"That's not how I meant it. I mean this scenario is not fit for a child. They shouldn't be put in these kinds of positions."_

_"...oh."_

_Yet more awkward silence until Trixie decided to break it._

_"So...my mom never mentioned you a lot."_

_"Fitting. I doubt she would after we had our falling out."_

_"Over what?"_

_"Your father."_

_"Wait...what?"_

_Ming took a deep breath before responding._

_"I was with your father before Beatrix was. But in the end, he chose her over me. I didn't exactly bite my tongue about it once they returned from their honeymoon."_

_"Well...that pretty much sums that up. But...now I'm guess I'm wondering why you're working with VIGILANCE?"_

_"...I suppose it's to atone for the days I worked for Gemini Labs instead."_

_Yet another curveball had been thrown at Trixie that moment. How much more was she going to learn about the people around her that changes everything?_

_"You...worked for GEMINI?"_

_"I was their Chief of Security," Ming replied, "With my military training, getting the job was simple. But the more I learned about the people I was protecting, the more I began to realize I was on the wrong side. I don't suppose you know much about Gemini's history?"_

_"A little," Trixie answered, "A.J said their founder had been under investigation for crimes against humanity, and was killed at a convention. They said it was VIGILANCE who did it."_

_"I will admit we attacked the center. I had long abandoned Gemini Labs since. But since i didn't actually see Kaspar, I can't verify what you've heard in regards to his death."_

_"And the Commander?"_

_"...that is an entirely different problem. His goals are not the same as Gemini Labs."_

_"My cousin said he just needed Gemini to weed out anyone that's against him."_

_"So you have been in contact with Talbot."_

_"Yeah. But how do you two know each other?"_

_"Shortly after I stopped speaking with Beatrix, I met your uncle to start over. He was the one who eventually led me to Gemini, but before that, I mostly took part-time jobs. Your cousin was 5 when we first met. It was before you were even born. Even then, I could see Ramsey holding resentment towards my sister and his brother...and it grew worse once you were born."_

_"...I _hate_ him. I hate him _so_ much."_

_"Don't say that too much. You'll turn _into_ him."  
><em>

_The rest of the car ride was spent in silence._

* * *

><p>Trixie had been lying awake by herself in her own tent. Everyone else was asleep at this point. Not a sound could be heard, save for her own thoughts. She had been reflecting on how she wound up in this fight, and what tomorrow would bring.<p>

_Enjoy your power while you can, Commander_, Trixie thought, _Because we're going to stop you. You'll pay for _everything_ you've done._

Trixie rolled to her side and drifted off to sleep.


	13. Hook, Line, and Sinker

Jorgen's patience was wearing thin. Though only hours had passed in Fairy World, it felt like days. He had brought in three different fairy workers to persuade the Fairy Council to elaborate on what exactly the Heart with Wings is. Jorgen's last resort measure was to bring up the possibility of the human and fairy worlds colliding with one another if the Commander found the Heart did the Council decide to answer the question he had demanded to have answered. It was the purple-robed elder who spoke up.

"The Heart with Wings is ancient history!" he loudly exclaimed, "It does not concern us now!"

"It is still active in the human world!" Jorgen bellowed, "Are those hoods blinding you? Just tell me what it is?"

"Will it shut you up if we just tell you?" asked the pink-robed elder, "We've spent hours arguing over this!"

"IF it gets me an answer!" Jorgen replied.

The Fairy Council murmured among themselves, for again what felt like longer than it really was, before the blue-robed elder, the lone female on the Council, responded.

"The Heart with Wings was one of two artifacts used in the early years of fairy civilization," she said, "The other was the Mouth that Sings. They were used to power our magic until we constructed the giant wand. At that point, the two artifacts were to be...'retired', so to speak."

"However," the purple one continued, "These artifacts...have minds of their own. While the Mouth that Sings was understanding of our progressive ideology and willingly went on it's way, the Heart with Wings...was reluctant."

"The Heart with Wings wanted to be the only source of magic for fairies," the pink one said, "That was what gave it a sense of worth. It was not willing to be cast aside for something it considered artificial. It began to drain us of the very magic it supplied us with for so many eons."

"We thought at first it would be a matter of time before it caved in," the purple one continued, "But we soon learned that our species was suffering as a result of its stubbornness. Many resources had been wasted trying to find alternative sources for energy...and countless lives, including women and children, were lost to the Heart. It literally sucked out their magic and their very beings. They suffered greatly. It wouldn't be long before the very thing that once established our civilization would be the cause of our extinction."

"Yes, yes, I get the picture!" Jorgen whined, "Bad things happened, the end was near, apocalyptic hubbub! But how did you actually DEFEAT it?"

"We called on the Mouth that Sings one more time to aid us," the blue one responded, "We feared that even though it bowed out with grace, it would not help us defeat the Heart after we had found a new source of magic. But the Mouth fully understood that we only needed it and the Heart as crutches before we could rely on our own methods. The two artifacts were equal in power, but with fairies aiding the Mouth, the Heart stood no chance. It was locked away in the human world where it could not do any more damage."

"But it is!" Jorgen shouted, "After all these centuries, we are starting to feel its presence again! If the Commander were to find it...wasn't there a contingency plan to make sure it would never fall into the wrong hands?"

"There..._was_," the purple one replied reluctantly, knowing Jorgen was aware of their failure, "Two fairies were hand-picked by the Council to guard the Heart regularly to make sure it did not return. One was named Gildred. The other...was Norlene.

* * *

><p>"Norlene," Talbot said, talking with one of the VIGILANCE agents outside the borders of Dimmsdale, "Who is that? And where did you hear that name?"<p>

"I don't know who she is," the agent replied, "But the transmissions we intercepted from the Commander suggest it was someone he knew, possibly loved. He stated that as potential motive for killing Ramsey."

"Wait," Talbot said, "He's...dead?"

"The Commander ordered Konda to kill him for 'selfish impulses'," the agent replied.

Talbot sat down on the large rock behind him. As the man who had single-handedly been raising him his whole life, it was hard to believe he was actually gone. Forever.

"You okay, Talbot?" asked Trixie.

Everyone had been waiting at the border before splitting up into their separate missions. Timmy and his fairies were right beside Trixie while Ming was with all the other agents. Talbot knew what Trixie had against his father...for authorizing the murder of her mother. By the same man who would end up killing him, no less. So rather than inform her about Ramsey's death, he put on a brave face and decided to hold off on mourning until after the Commander was defeated.

"Fine," he said, a little more roughly than he intended, "Let's just execute these missions before...er, sorry, poor choice of words."

"It's okay," Trixie replied, reminded of why they were going on this mission, "I know what you meant."

"Don't worry, you two," Ming said, "I've got these agents under control. We'll get Jeffrey back before the execution can happen."

"Assuming _we_ don't find him first," Timmy replied, referring to himself and the Tang cousins, "We may get lucky and break him out of Tang Manor before tonight."

"We might get even luckier and find the Commander and take him out, too," Trixie said enthusiastically.

"We also might _not_ get lucky," Talbot replied, giving a realistic alternative, "The Commander isn't stupid. He's going to eventually expect some form of resistance. Just because he's spent weeks hiding out in some master control room in Tang Manor doesn't mean he's above doing his own dirty work."

"Talbot's right," Ming said, "It's possible that once the Commander knows you're inside the mansion, he'll hunt you down himself. Even with mercenaries and Bagmen guarding the mansion, I wouldn't put it past him to take some morbid pleasure out of chasing down his enemies."

"Would he really risk exposing his identity to us?" Timmy asked, "Isn't he worried we'll tell the rest of our guys?"

"Not if he kills you first," replied Ming, "You _need_ to be _careful_."

Ming knelt down and wrapped Trixie in a hug, one that felt very familiar to Trixie.

"I've already lost my sister to this monster," Ming said into her ear, "I don't need to lose you either."

"You won't," Trixie replied, "I've got two of the most reliable guys here with my back."

"Hopefully you have ours the same way," Talbot said, "Now let's move!"

As Timmy, Trixie, and Talbot (whom one agent jokingly referred to as the 'Double T' trio) made a dash towards Tang Manor, Ming and the other VIGILANCE agents deployed to Dimmsdale went in the other direction towards Dimmsdale Mall, preparing to stop an execution.

* * *

><p>"So what happened to them?" asked Jorgen, "What went wrong with Gildred and Norlene?"<p>

"Norlene made the fatal mistake of falling in love with a human," the pink one replied, "An intriguing notion among the younger fairies, but older ones know how dangerous it can truly be. Especially when the love between a human and fairy results in conceiving a child. Norlene could not handle the pain of physical birth labors, and died in childbirth."

"As for Gildred," the blue one said, "He began listening to the things the Heart would say to him. He attempted to steal the Heart for himself, but failed. He was released from his duties and served time in prison. After being released, he was given custody of a fairy godchild."

"He had a fairy godchild?" asked Jorgen.

"He had been given a second chance," the purple one replied, "We thought assigning a fairy godchild to him would do him good. For the most part, it did. He behaved in the manner he was expected to. But he had then persuaded his godchild to steal the Heart for him. When we arrived to once again relieve him of his duties, he disappeared. There was no trace of him in our world or in the human world. Not even our best trackers could find him. The godchild was left alone, but there were still concerns about his connection to the Heart."

"What connection?" asked Jorgen.

"Mere humans should not be able to touch the Heart and still live, let alone use it," the blue one said, "But somehow, Gildred's godchild was able to use it for a brief time. This was when he realized that the godchild we had assigned him was someone who should never have been allowed to exist."

"Wait a minute," Jorgen wondered.

A godchild who could use the Heart. A disappearing fairy godparent. A fairy woman who fell in love with a human man. And had a child with him. Making that child half-fairy. Meaning he would be physically capable of using the Heart. Which led back to Gildred's fairy godchild.

"Who was his godchild?" asked Jorgen.

The purple elder used his wand to make a book of archives appear before them, and the pages magically turned towards the name and profile of the godchild assigned to Gildred.

Jorgen dropped his giant wand, a resounding echo erupting throughout the giant building.

"We need to assemble our mightiest armies immediately!" Jorgen ordered.

"And why is that?" asked the purple one.

"Timmy Turner...is in grave danger."

* * *

><p>Ming and the agents had arrived at Dimmsdale Mall, and while the building itself was kept in decent shape, the courtyard had been deprived of the decor and beauty it once provided. Now stood dirt, mud, and a giant stone platform, set up especially for public executions. Such as the one VIGILANCE was trying to prevent.<p>

"We wait here until we hear from Team One," Ming said, "Be on the lookout for enemy targets."

"Ma'am," one agent said, "What's that on the platform?"

A lone briefcase had been placed there. The Gemini Labs logo had been imprinted on the front. Ming approached it carefully, with the other agents surrounding it.

"Open it carefully," Ming said.

"Can we do it quickly?" the other agent asked, "The smell of this place is burning my eyes! I want to get this over with."

"Quit complaining," said another agent, "I'm suffering too, but you don't hear me complaining."

"You're complaining _now_!"

"Because _you_ started it!"

Ming had an awful realization. She too began to smell what was around them. It had strong alcoholic properties, and since they weren't at a bar, only one assumption popped into her mind.

Gas. All over the execution site.

The realization came too late. The agent opened the briefcase, and inside, the strap keeping it closed triggered the box inside to light the match, reacting with the gas in the air. One second, the area had become a bright, flaming inferno. The next, all that was left was burning carcasses and a stone platform, with an open briefcase in the middle, revealing the lighter and a message written on the lid of the inside.

_Thanks for taking the bait. Yours truly, the Commander._

* * *

><p><strong>Are you starting to figure out who the Commander is? Well, whatever your idea is, you'll know for sure of his identity in the next chapter. The rest of the story, about three or four chapters after that, will be Timmy and Trixie uniting their friends and family (will the fairies make it in time to assist?) to stop the Commander from succeeding.<strong>


	14. The Man Behind the Curtain

The night sky was reflecting off the walls of Tang Manor, and all throughout the outer gardens, Bagmen were patrolling the area. Timmy, Trixie, and Talbot were hiding behind one of the long hedge walls that surrounded the manor. To get any closer would be a greater risk than if the guards were human. The Bagmen would be able to see them from the corner of whatever counted as their eyes.

"Well that's just great," Trixie moaned, "I didn't think it'd be easy, but this is near impossible! How are we supposed to slip past the Bagmen?"

"You seem to be forgetting we have fairies on our side," Talbot replied, "I'm sure Timmy can think of something."

"This'll be a cinch," Timmy said, "Cosmo, Wanda, I wish we were invisible!"

Cosmo and Wanda flashed their wands, and in less than a second, the three humans had gone invisible. That was the good news. The bad news was that they couldn't see each other.

"Trixie," Talbot said, "Take that rock nearby and mark it."

Conveniently, Timmy had a marker in his pocket (there were still some things she took with her after she was chased out of her own home) and drew a star on it...or at least what looked like a star. It wouldn't be perfect on something that wasn't a flat surface.

"We'll use that to keep up with each other," Talbot said, "Trixie, you know your house better than any of us, so lead us inside."

Taking the lead, Trixie held the rock in the palm of her hand so the other two could know where she was and where she was leading them. Fortunately, the Bagmens' senses didn't extend to invisible intruders, but some of them did look their way upon hearing footsteps. Each time that happened, the three of them would have to pause and wait until the Bagmen resumed its post. The patio was more difficult to be quiet on, since it was made of wood rather than grass. Tiptoeing their way across, Trixie carefully opened the glass door to the Tangs' massive kitchen.

"No talking until we reach the control room," Talbot whispered.

The three made their way to the entrance room, immediately noticing mercenaries patrolling the area, two of them being snipers who currently aimed at the front door. They wanted zero chances of anyone getting in.

Unfortunately, invisibility wasn't going to work here. Trixie had failed to remember that the manor had advanced security, and while normally it was only activated during the late hours of night, it could still be turned on with the flip of a switch. They learned too late that the Commander had done just this. As soon as Trixie stepped on the marble floor, sirens went off all over the manor, and every mercenary had prepared their guns. Despite being invisible, the trio hid behind one of the white luxury loveseats nearby.

"Trixie?" asked Timmy.

"Uh, yeah, I forgot we had top-notch security," Trixie admitted.

"And you didn't think the Commander would take advantage of that?" hissed Talbot.

"Man, it must really suck to not be able to fly!" Cosmo exclaimed.

"Cosmo," Wanda said, "That's brilliant!"

"It is?" asked Cosmo, "I was just thinking out loud. Speaking of which, it must also suck to get salmonella."

"We get the picture, Cosmo," Timmy said, "I wish there was zero gravity in the manor!"

"Wait, what does..." both Trixie and Talbot said.

Before they could finish, everything in the room, including people and furniture, had started floating. The mercenaries didn't get a chance to fire their weapons.

"I see," Talbot said, "Now not only are we invisible, we can avoid making sounds with our footsteps by simply floating to our destination. Smart thinking."

One mercenary, however, seemed to be smart enough to hang on to his surroundings to make his way around. Grabbing the rails and stepping his way towards one of the mercenaries was Konda. Trixie stared at him with contempt and hatred. She hadn't seen Konda since she witnessed him murdering her mother. And last time Konda had seen Trixie, she was escaping the manor, still thinking he was their trusted bodyguard.

"What's goin' on?" asked Konda.

"Unsure, sir," the mercenary replied, "Everything just started floating!"

"I can only think of one reason for that," Konda said, "That boy is here. And I'll bet he brought company. Get th' mercs together and search th' foyer. I'm goin' to check on th' Commander. You go to th' portal to check on Jeffrey, make sure he stays there before th' boss digs up the Heart."

"Wait, they want him to _stay_ in prison?" Trixie whispered, "I thought they were taking him to be executed."

"Something's not right," Talbot whispered, "You two follow that mercenary to the portal. That'll solve one problem for us."

"What about you?" asked Trixie.

"I'm going to make sure your father and whoever else they're holding here stays safe," Talbot whispered in reply, "And I'm taking the fairies with me. I have a feeling I'll need them more than you do. That is...if Timmy doesn't mind loaning them to me?"

"I don't mind," Timmy said, "The more power on your side, the better."

Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof floated behind Talbot as he went into one direction towards the portal. Timmy started following the two mercenaries, but Trixie kept her eyes on Konda. Not an ounce of regret or humanity on his face. Just an inhumane creature. A killer. She floated towards him, and with all the energy she could muster up for someone floating in the air, she kicked him in the face, sending him flying towards the ceiling.

"What in th'...?" Konda hissed.

He grabbed the chandelier to keep himself from floating all over the place, as it was one of the few objects nailed to a part of the manor. Seeing utter disbelief on his face gave Trixie a brief sense of accomplishment, being able to take part of her anger out on him. But it wasn't enough, nor would she settle her score at this moment. She allowed herself that brief victory as she too followed the mercenaries to the control room.

A few minutes later, the two mercenaries, still not having realized someone had attacked Konda, opened the door to the control room. But before either of them could enter, both of them felt something hard hit the back of their heads. Both Trixie and Timmy had picked up vases and knocked out the mercenaries.

"You're sure you don't mind using those?" Timmy asked her.

"There's more important things to do right now than worry about broken vases," Trixie replied, "But if we all make it out of this alive, Dad can just buy new ones."

For some reason, the control room was unaffected by magic, and therefore, Timmy's wishes stopped taking effect once the two of them went inside. Not only were they visible, but they also planted their own two feet on the floor, unwittingly opening the vents that were only opened upon a security breach. But that didn't make the Commander turn around. Yes, the Commander himself was sitting in the chair, watching all the monitors on the wall.

"It's him," Timmy whispered, "It's really the Commander!"

Trixie hit his arm telling him to be quiet. The Commander still hadn't moved. But that didn't mean he wasn't in the manor. At long last, they had found him. His days of hiding away pulling everyone else's strings were over. The one that had caused all this misery, especially Trixie's, was about to be unveiled.

"Now!" hissed Trixie.

Both of them turned the chair around to face the Commander. Instead, they faced an unpleasant surprise. Sitting there was not the Commander, but a test dummy. A test dummy with a circular speaker in its forehead. And on the top of its head was a small antennae.

"No..." Trixie said.

"That's how he did it?" Timmy asked, "He radioed in this dummy and used it to communicate? He was never in the manor?"

"NOOO!" Trixie cried, hitting the dummy repeatedly, tears coming down her face, "We were so close! SO CLOSE! WHY does he keep getting away from us?"

"Trixie," Timmy said, "I hate to point this out when you're already upset, but you need to see this monitor."

Trixie looked up at the monitor Timmy was looking at. On it was the results of the explosion at Dimmsdale Mall, the supposed execution site for Jeffrey Tang's supposed execution. All the bodies of the VIGILANCE agents, including Ming, were lying there motionless.

"No...no...NO!" Trixie cried, falling to her knees, "It was a trap. He did it _again_..."

Trixie didn't have time to finish her thoughts, and Timmy didn't have time to comfort her. The vents that opened when the control room opened were holding back knockout gas, and it had already taken its affect on Timmy and Trixie. Both collapsed side by side, their last thoughts before slipping into unconsciousness was how blindly they fell into the Commander's trap.

* * *

><p>Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof were by Talbot's side when he found the portal. It was in the manor's library, and several bookshelves had been knocked down to make room for it. A large, circular portal, dark blue and purple, was how Gemini Labs and the Commander were able to store prisoners in an untraceable prison.<p>

"We're here," Talbot said, "We're at the prison."

"Yes we are," Wanda said, "I was worried for a minute you'd slip up again."

"He didn't slip," Cosmo said, "He was flying!"

"Not _slip_, Cosmo," Wanda corrected him, "Slip _up_. It means Talbot started getting sloppy with his game plan."

"I'm sure I don't know what that means," Talbot said.

"I thought the first time you made a mistake it was just an honest mistake," Wanda said, "When you had admitted you knew we were Timmy's fairy godparents when clearly you should have had no idea who he was."

"I had heard the stories," Talbot said.

"But then there was the transmission the Commander made to announce Trixie's dad's execution," Wanda said, "You were very quick to come up with a plan even though you weren't actually part of VIGILANCE."

"I told you they gave me temporary command while..."

"Who did?" asked Wanda, "Because last time I checked, you had 'personal reasons' to not work with VIGILANCE. And I don't think your willingness to cooperate with them has to do with taking down the Commander."

"I suppose it would come back to that sooner or later," Talbot said.

He sat down on one of the fallen bookshelves, looking up at the two fairies.

"I guess I haven't been completely honest with you," Talbot confessed, "There are personal reasons I resent VIGILANCE. And there is good reason why I decided to lead this raid."

"Does it have to do with saving your uncle?" asked Wanda, crossing her arms, "Or to protect Trixie?"

"Not to save them," Talbot replied, "Nor to protect them."

Wanda got her wand ready.

"To kill them."

Before any of the three fairies could strike, Talbot held out his hand and had the three trapped in anti-magic spheres, which ironically required the use of magic. None of the fairy magic got outside the spheres they were trapped in.

"Gah! What is this?" asked Cosmo frantically.

"Anti-magic spheres," Talbot replied, "It keeps fairy magic inside and weakens anyone or anything inside. That's one of the few 'magic tricks' I learned from my mother, but once I get the Heart with Wings, that will all change."

"The Heart with Wings?" asked Wanda, "That's what this is about? And how are you able to use magic? You're human!"

"Not so much, no," Talbot replied, "But now is not the time for talk. I must guide you to the prison to unveil my biggest surprise yet. And believe me, you'll want to hear it."

* * *

><p>Following Jorgen to the Fairy Armory, the small clerk had been scrambling to jot down every detail Jorgen was giving him.<p>

"We will need every available weapon to stop him," Jorgen said, "He may not have much magic, but if he gets the Heart, Talbot will become more powerful than any fairy we know!"

"But why does a human, let alone a former godchild, have that kind of magic?!" the clerk asked in a panic.

"He is only half-human," replied Jorgen, "Norlene is the reason he has those abilities."

"Wait," the clerk said, "I thought Gildred was his fairy godparent. You mean to tell me Talbot was actually Norlene's godchild?"

"Not her godchild," Jorgen replied, bursting open the steel doors to the armory, "Her son. Her _biological_ son."

* * *

><p><strong>Da-da-daaa! Now the Commander is unveiled! Guest reviewer David, you were half right. Talbot iswas Gildred's godchild, but he is ALSO the Commander. As for Gildred himself, we'll see about him next chapter!**


	15. Pray for the Best

Trixie didn't want to open her eyes. She had been exhausted ever since this entire ordeal had begun. She was extremely tempted to let her eyelids stay shut as blurs of reality were piercing their way to her eyes. But she knew she would have to get up. It wouldn't be over unless she and Timmy did something. At the moment, however, there wasn't much they could do. Both of them were chained to the walls, and from Trixie's perspective, she could faintly make out the figure of Talbot kicking the tar out of her father. Roundhouse after roundhouse, Jeffrey's formerly botoxed face had lost its edge, and a lot of blood to match. But why was Talbot kicking him?

"Trixie? Trixie!"

Trixie thought at first it was Timmy calling out to her, until she realized the voice was higher pitched and more feminine. Veronica had been chained next to her, with Tad, Chad, Missy, Tootie, A.J, Chester, Crocker, and Timmy's parents in line. Jeffrey had been placed in the center of the room, and Timmy to Trixie's left. To her surprise, Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof were all trapped in what looked like transparent force fields, though the technical term was anti-magic spheres. All of them had significant scratches on their bodies, and Veronica's hair, normally in a ponytail, fell down over her face.

"Veronica?" whispered Trixie.

"Thank goodness you're still alive," Veronica said, "No one's seen you in forever!"

"What is this place?" she asked.

"This is where they've been holding us for the last several weeks," replied Veronica, "And torturing us. Your cousin only just arrived."

"Talbot?" asked Trixie again, "Why would he..."

She looked up and finally realized that her eyes were not playing tricks on her. That was really her cousin assaulting her father. He looked different in a wife-beater shirt, but it was definitely him. Which could only mean one thing.

"All this time...it was you?" Trixie asked faintly, "You're..."

"I wasn't expecting you to be awake so soon," Talbot replied, still having his back to the prisoners, "But in answer to your question...yes. I am the Commander. The one you've been searching for all this time."

From the corner of the room, Konda threw a towel to Talbot, which he then used to wipe sweat off his body. From another separate but equally distant corner, both Gabriel and Alexander Ortiz brought him a brown, cotton trenchcoat. Talbot placed the trenchcoat over himself, finally turning around to face the prisoners.

"Surprised?" asked Talbot, "All the time I fed you intel about the Commander, and he was right under your nose. Sloppy, Trixie. Very sloppy."

"Wait, _he's_ the guy responsible for all this?" asked Veronica.

Stepping aside, Talbot now gave her a good view of her father's bruised and bloody face. All that could be seen in his eyes was sadness and regret.

"Trixie," he groaned, "You...shouldn't have come."

It hurt every bone in his face to speak.

"But I came to rescue _you_!" she exclaimed.

"And instead, you walked into my trap," Talbot said, "It was almost too easy. At least it was until _Turner_ showed up. And as useful as your fairies were to me..."

Talbot then pointed to Konda and Gabriel, saying "_You two_ were supposed to have _killed_ him!"

"WHAT is going ON?" asked Chester.

"How long has Timmy had fairies?" asked A.J.

"I TOLD you they were real! I told you he had...FAIRY. GOD. PARENTS!" Crocker exclaimed (even in chains, he could express his trademark rants).

"Well what about _why_ this is all happening?" asked Missy.

"I'm glad you asked," Talbot responded, "And I'd be happy to explain. You see, there's a very ancient artifact here in Dimmsdale that I want. It was used long ago by the fairies of old. Now, if the most ancient of beings once had to rely on its power, imagine what it can do for someone in our age. The potential...my god, the potential, it's limitless."

"But you made a very bad assumption, Talbot," Wanda told him, "Humans can't actually _use _the Heart without being destroyed by it."

"Didn't you figure it out when I trapped you and your magical family in those anti-magic spheres?" Talbot asked her, "I'm only _half_ human. And that's through my father's side. Through my _mother_, I'm also half fairy."

"Wait, that's possible?" asked a confused Crocker, "I thought crossbreeding was forbidden among fairies!"

"Well, looks like someone's done their research," Talbot replied, "Though it's not so much _forbidden_ as it is..._frowned upon_. Mainly because humans intricately want more than they can handle. Their greed gets the better of them."

"Then what do you call destroying half the town in search of the Heart?" asked Timmy.

"That would be something I call evening the playing field," Talbot said, "But if it's going to stay that way, it's going to need some...divine intervention. And that's where I come in."

"You really think you can control the Heart?" asked Wanda, "Even if you _are _half-fairy, it won't respond to just any fairy!"

"Then it's a good thing my mother was one of the original two guardians of the Heart," Talbot replied smugly.

"No way...NORLENE was your mother?" asked a shocked Wanda.

"Wait...that's th' name you told Ramsey about right before you had me kill him," Konda said.

"Because _he_ was the one who murdered her," Talbot replied, "Once he learned about her magical nature, he killed her thinking her powers would become his. And he only raised _me_ to try and get her powers though her offspring...which is why he went to work for Gemini Labs. He wanted access to their research. He wanted a way to harvest Norlene's power through _me_."

"Did he even know you were th' Commander?" asked Konda.

"Highly unlikely," Talbot replied, "He just followed the money."

"So you had daddy issues," Timmy said, "A lot of people have issues. That doesn't turn them all into manipulative sadists."

From the distance, Talbot conjured up an energy ball that slammed itself into Timmy, sending pain all throughout his body.

"Timmy!" Trixie cried.

"I'd advise against name-calling me in the future," Talbot replied, "Once I fuse with the Heart, there will be a lot more pain for you."

"Wait, you're...going to _fuse_ with it?" asked Wanda, "As in make it a part of you?"

"How else do you propose I fully utilize it's powers?" asked Talbot, not expecting a serious answer, "Now, I know of a fairy who is very eager to meet you. Are you familiar with Gildred?"

"He was the other guardian," Wanda replied, "What does he have to do with you?"

"He was my fairy godparent," Talbot replied.

"WHAT?" everyone cried.

"YOU had a fairy godparent?" Tootie asked.

"It's how I learned to fully use my fairy powers," Talbot replied, "My mother was dead and my father was abusive. I was the perfect troubled child for a godparent. And since Gildred was given a second chance, they paired us up. Who'd have thought it would be the most threatening alliance to the Fairy World?"

"And where exactly is this Gildred?" asked Veronica.

"Tell you what," Talbot said, "Since you're all so eager, why don't you meet him right now? Gabriel! Alexander!"

"Yes, sir?" asked Dr. Alexander.

"You want us?" Gabriel asked.

"Bind!" Talbot declared.

Something triggered inside the Ortizs' heads. Something that sent to the floor screaming in agony. Their screams were inhuman, and was even worse for the prisoners, who could not cover their ears since their hands were chained (except for Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof, who could still hear it nonetheless). Konda just stood still, confused over the scene playing out in front of them. Talbot just smirked as he watched Gabriel and Alexander turn into completely black shadows that morphed into one another. They had become one black ball of energy that started floating into the air. The screaming had stopped, so everyone then looked up to see the ball burst, revealing another fairy godparent inside. His hair, half shaved and half over his left eye, was a dark purple. His long robes were black and red, and his eyes were slanted with golden irises. Other than that, he was like any other godparent, complete with wings, a wand, and a floating crown (albeit slightly cracked).

"That _really_ freakin' hurt!" Gildred moaned, stretching his back.

"It's nothing you didn't sign on for, Gildred," Talbot replied.

"WHAT. JUST. HAPPENED?" an appalled Veronica asked, leaving short pauses between every word.

"What...happened to Gabriel?" asked A.J.

"Or Dr. Alexander?" asked Trixie.

"Did we just see what I think we saw?" Mrs. Turner asked.

"Pleased to make your acquaintances," Gildred replied, introducing himself, "I am the infamous Gildred. Maybe you've heard of me? No? Pity. I was quite a legend."

"Before my father worked for Gemini Labs, I needed to have the facilities infiltrated," Talbot replied, "And I simultaneously needed someone else to both infiltrate the Tang family and the youth of Dimmsdale. Now, I already had Konda inside Tang Manor, but that still left other positions to be filled, and I wasn't going to use just any mercenary, or a Bagman for that matter. So Gildred suggested a long-forgotten spell to temporarily make a fairy into a human. But we put a little something extra into it...Gildred was split into _two_ people...one was Gabriel, and the other was Alexander. Gildred had been two separate people posing as father and son, with _no_ memories of their past lives as a godparent."

"...man, my head hurts from listening to all that," Chester groaned.

And that was when Trixie realized she should have seen this coming. She had a nightmare about it the night her mother died. In the dream, Gabriel and Alexander had linked arms before fusing into one being. That should have been the red flag revealing they were both Gildred, as outlandish a thought as that was. Ramsey submitting himself to the Gemini symbol made it clear he allied himself with them in this endeavor. Her father being dragged away was his obvious imprisonment. Her mother exploding into little pieces of light came true that night with her death. And Talbot looking at her as she died before fading away...that told her everything she should have known.

"And _that_, boys and girls, is Dark Horse in its entirety," Talbot concluded, "And who knows what direction it will take once the Heart with Wings is mine? Oh, and one other thing...Konda, I believe you wanted to do something..."

Without waiting further, and without changing his facial expressions, Konda approached Trixie and kicked her across the face, leaving a scratch on her cheek and blood dripping from her nose.

"Don't think I didn't figure out that was you who kicked me into th' chandelier, brat," Konda said.

"And now to get the Heart," Talbot said, about to take his leave.

"Wait," Gildred said, "You know where it is?"

"I've known where it was ever since we first spied on them at the pool," Talbot replied.

* * *

><p><em>"Earth to old guy," Talbot said, looking to the person on his right, "The target is Trixie Tang! You're just watching that buck-toothed kid!"<em>

_"That buck-toothed kid," said Ramsey, "is what we want. He's the key to knocking the Tangs down a notch."_

_"That a fact?" asked Talbot, "Well, who'd have thought someone like that could put those assclowns where they belong?"_

_"'Someone like that'? I don't think you know what that boy can do if he so pleases..."_

* * *

><p>"It was when he fully explained who Timmy Turner was and what he knew about Timmy's godparents that I realized there were far more children with godparents here in this city than any other in most other places," Talbot continued to explain, "And because of my relations to Norlene...something clicked inside my head, as if she was telling me this was a place of importance to her. And after getting Ramsey to do more research, I learned that the Heart of Wings was here all along. Right here in Tang Manor."<p>

"What?" asked Jeffrey, "How is that possible? I've lived here for 15 years and not once did..."

"So that giant stone pillar in the center of your hedge maze never struck you as odd?" asked Talbot, "Did you really think it was just for decor? No, underneath that pillar is exactly where I'll find the Heart."

Talbot was about to take his leave until a faint voice spoke up.

"...why?"

Trixie had almost been broken at this point. There wasn't much keeping her going. She at least had to know.

"For the Heart," Talbot replied, "Were you not listening to me before?"

"Why look for the Heart?" asked Trixie, "Why fuse with it and destroy everything?"

"To make things _right_," Talbot said, now facing Trixie, "The world...is a cruel, bitter place. From the start, nothing had ever been fair. People like me never got a break. There was always someone standing in the way of what could have been. And my drive for equality, my desire for justice...only grew stronger when I learned of my heritage; that even in the world of fairies, there were oppressive hierarchies that had been in place to keep people down. The rich, the powerful, the bold, they were the ones who ran things. There was never a little man to rise up and make things right. To make the world a better place. But once I learned of the power the Heart with Wings possessed, and what it could do to those people, the pain and suffering they deserved...I knew I would be the person to bring about that justice. What in the hell made you think I would pass that chance up?"

"All those people who've died!" exclaimed Trixie, "Who've been hurt! My mom..."

"...was one of those who deserved it," Talbot exclaimed, "Now, don't get me wrong, I know how you feel. I lost my mother too. I always did feel closer to my magical heritage than my human one. But at least my mother spent her left defending something. She was one of the good ones._ Yours_..."

"...don't even..."

"...spent her life tailing a free ride..."

"STOP IT!"

"...lying and cheating her way to the top..."

"LIAR!"

"...wasting her life indulging herself..."

"DON'T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT HER LIKE THAT!"

"...and all of that..."

"SHE WAS NOTHING BUT CARING AND COMPASSIONATE!"

"...made her life WORTHLESS."

That was the last straw. The last shred of compassion Trixie could possibly muster up for her cousin, even after everything he had done. Now she wanted nothing more than to end his life. With tears running down her face, and with no signs of stopping, Trixie lunged towards Talbot, not caring that the chains around her would prevent her from doing so, desperately trying in vain to break free. After she had exhausted herself, she fell back to the ground, being watched with sympathy from the other prisoners as she slouched.

"Better catch your breath, Trixie," Talbot said, "You'll want some when watching the end."

That time, Talbot had indefinitely left through the portal for sure, with Konda and Gildred following behind him.

"Trixie?" asked Timmy.

"Are you okay?" asked Veronica.

"DO I LOOK OKAY?" shouted Trixie.

Both Timmy and Veronica moved back a bit, giving Trixie some space.

"...I'm done," Trixie wailed, "I can't do this anymore. It's over."

"Not yet it's not!" boomed a voice from outside.

Barging through the wall, in a miraculously chiche fashion, was Jorgen von Strangle, wearing armor and a helmet in lieu of a crown.

"Arnold Schwartzenegger!" exclaimed Mr. Turner

"Wha...NO! It is I, Jorgen von Strangle, here to save the day!" he exclaimed, "Actually, I'm here to save all of you so that _you_ can save the day."

"Us?" asked Timmy, "Maybe you didn't notice, but we're kind of at a disadvantage."

"And you didn't think to wish yourselves out of captivity?" asked Jorgen.

"Uh, we sorta have our hands tied at the moment," said Cosmo.

"Oh, right," Jorgen said, "Anti-magic spheres. I guess we underestimated Talbot's power."

"You KNEW the Commander was Talbot?" asked Timmy.

"Only recently," Jorgen replied, "See, he's actually the son of..."

"WE KNOW!" cried Trixie, "JUST GET US OUT OF HERE!"

"Cut her a break, Jorgen," Wanda pleaded, "She's had a _very_ rough day."

"Very well," Jorgen said.

"With a flash of his giant wand, the anti-magic spheres had been shattered, and the chains holding the human prisoners had disappeared. Everyone had flexed their wrists, glad to finally have feeling in them.

"Now," Jorgen said, "regardless of how you all feel about each other, or where you all come from...we must ALL help to stop Talbot. And to ensure he that Sings!" good...we must unleash the _Mouth that Sings_!"


	16. Prepare for the Worst

The portal inside the Tang Manor library had illuminated as the former prisoners stepped out. The popular kids were on the left, the 'unpopulars' on the right, with Timmy and Trixie standing in the middle (except for Missy, who strutted along behind the other kids) . Mr. and Mrs. Turner were sticking behind the giant, muscular fairy (who they eventually realized was _not_ Arnold Schwartzenegger, but Jorgen von Strangle). The bookcases were still knocked over, leaving several books, opened and unopened, lying around.

"Okay, we're out safely!" Chester exclaimed, "Now we run!"

Trixie pulled at the collar of Chester's shirt just as he and A.J started to dash off. Despite the adventures they dreamed of going on when they played video games or read comic books, this adventure came with the very real threat of a fate worse than death.

"Are you forgetting Talbot and his crew are trying to destroy the world?" asked Trixie.

"Trixie, this is WAY above our paygrade!" A.J exclaimed, "These aren't cartoonish villains who always have their dastardly plans foiled at the end of the day. These guys mean business!"

"Oh, A.J," Timmy said, "How quick you are to forget I have fairy godparents."

"Which they will need to forget again once the Talbot crisis is over," Jorgen demanded.

"Trixie, are you sure about this?" Veronica asked, getting her hair in order, "This is nowhere near anything we can handle."

"I'm sure," Trixie replied without a tone, "Talbot needs to pay for what he's done.

"What about Konda?" asked Chad, "That psycho hitman guarding Talbot?"

"In case you've forgotten, he has a GUN!" said Tad.

"Can't Timmy just _wish_ the gun away?" asked Tootie.

"Or wish this whole thing never happened?" asked Missy.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple, little girls," Jorgen replied, towering over them, "Because Talbot's half-fairy, his magic prevents us from undoing what he has already done. All we can do is stop him from doing any more damage."

"That and it's against Da Rules!" Wanda added.

"What about weapons?" Trixie asked her, "Is it against the rules..."

"_Da Rules!_" Cosmo corrected her.

"That's what I said! Is it against _the rules_ to wish for weapons of our own?"

Wanda looked to Jorgen for answers, who in turn pulled out a much larger copy of Da Rules. Seconds felt like minutes with everyone staring intently at Jorgen, who was reading equally as intently through Da Rules, leaving no page unturned.

"There's a few," Jorgen said, poofing Da Rules away, "But I LOVE weapons, especially those RPGs that launch rainbow-colored unicorns, so I usually don't enforce them."

"Then I wish we had fairy weapons to fight back!" Timmy exclaimed.

Jorgen, Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof all flashed their wands, but only Timmy, Trixie, and Veronica ended up getting weapons. Timmy and Veronica both got guns that fired stars instead of bullets (though the effects were more or less the same, sans death, as it was against Da Rules to wish for someone to die). Trixie got none other than an RPG that fires rainbow-colored unicorns, but much lighter than an actual RPG.

"How come only you three got weapons?" asked Chester.

"We've got other plans for the rest of you," Wanda replied, "Do any of you have cars?"

"Mine got run over by the Dinklebergs last spring!" Mr. Turner exclaimed before growling, "Grrrrrrrrrr, Dinkleberg..."

"I have one in the lab," A.J responded.

"Where did you get a CAR?" asked Trixie.

"The internet! Duh!" replied Cosmo.

"No!" A.J defended himself vehemently, "I _invented_ this one!"

Wanda pointed with her wand at Chester, A.J, Chad, and Tad, saying, "You four get in that car and be ready to get Trixie away from the manor if she fails!"

"_She? Fails?" _asked Tad, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You will know _if_ she fails," Jorgen replied, "The four of _you_..."

Jorgen pointed at Mr. and Mrs. Turner, along with Tottie and Missy.

"...go take _this _to the city limits."

What Jorgen was referring to was a small, circular tablet with fujia-toned cracks inside the aging rock from which it was carved.

"What is it?" asked Mrs. Turner.

"It's one of the few things that can break the spell Talbot placed over the city," replied Jorgen, "Once you leave with it, Dimmsdale will once again be on the radar, and no one will get lost trying to find it. This way, when this all ends, the proper authorities will know exactly where to clean up."

"Hold on!" Tad shouted, "If we're going to be standing around in A.J's 'car' waiting around like sitting ducks, shouldn't we get our _own _protection?"

Jorgen sighed, saying, "I suppose you're right."

With a pound on the ground from his giant wand, Jorgen conjured up four identical weapons; long, thin lasers that could pierce through any surface, along with decently-sized dome shields surrounding the front. All four kids, nerd and cool alike, grinned wider than the moon when they got their hands on actual weapons of magical nature.

"Like kids in a candy store!" Cosmo said, swatting Poof's binky away, "Except they sell magic guns instead of candy!"

Timmy and Trixie observed the rare instance of the two cliques actually sharing a common interest that didn't involve running for their lives. Well, technically, it was to protect themselves and not die, but by no means did they have to get excited with each other over this development. And yet, they did, as if there had been no barrier between them.

"Looks like our respective friends enjoy their new toys," Timmy said to Trixie.

"I'm just glad they're not at each others' throats," Trixie responded thankfully.

"You are?" asked Cosmo, "I thought you hated unpopulars!"

Wanda smacked Cosmo on the back of the head, obviously berating him for not seeing the change of perspective Trixie had been through the past several weeks.

"I've had a lot of time to grow up during this whole crisis," Trixie told him, "Besides, even if we were in different social circles, or even if we weren't depending on each other to get out of this alive, 'unpopulars' weren't really my enemies. Now, the estranged relative who had my mother murdered, tortured my father, stole everything to his name, and is now trying to destroy the world to satisfy his own sadistic delusions? THAT guy makes the list."

"...speaking of which," pondered Timmy, "Where's your dad?"

"Hey," Veronica added, "Has anybody seen Mr. Crocker?"

* * *

><p>In the massive garden behind Tang Manor, several mercenaries had been setting up explosives to remotely detonate on a large stone pillar in the center of an average sized hill. For such a tall structure, the darkness of the night hid it well, as if some magical being other than the Heart deliberately tried to deter attention away from it. It was probably why Jeffrey Tang never paid any mind to it in all his years living in his large home. Talbot and Konda stood side by side watching the mercenaries place the last of the explosives on the pillar, with a disappointed and dismayed Gildred floating above.<p>

"Jeez, I coulda just poofed this thing away if you had given me the order!" Gildred complained.

"Good things come to those who wait," Talbot remarked, "And I've waited for a very long time."

"Sir," one of the mercenaries said, "The last of the explosives is in place."

"Very good," Talbot said, "That's our cue to stand back."

Talbot and Konda joined the other mercenaries in running backwards away from the pillar, while Gildred had an excellent view from the safe distance he was already at. Konda had been given the honors of holding the detonator, and pulled it out of his shirt pocket. As he prepared to pull it out, one of the mercenaries was knocked out by a golden star. Turning around, they saw the source of it.

Three small children, two girls and one boy, accompanied by four fairies, one of them large and muscular, had charged towards them trying to save the day. Talbot glared as his cousin ran behind Timmy Turner with what looked like an RPG, while Timmy and the blonde one (he believed her name was Veronica) fired stars at the mercenaries.

"Well don't just stand there!" Konda roared at the mercenaries, "Kill those brats!"

Any and all bullets fired by the mercenaries were either deflected by Jorgen's magic, or just a poor shot to begin with. Not every mercenary on the team knew how to use a firearm, which was why they were trained in explosives. Half the mercenaries had been knocked out, while the others were being thrown aside by Cosmo and Wanda.

"What a surprise," Talbot said, "You have quite the unfair advantage. I see why you would want to prevent me from fusing with the Heart."

"We're _stopping_ you from doing it because you're going to destroy everything with it!" shouted Timmy, "You thought we were gonna let that slide, especially after everything you've done to Trixie?"

"Oh, boo hoo," Talbot mocked, "You couldn't even use your magic to _kill_ the mercenaries under my employ! How well did you think that would work out for you?"

"Stop letting him talk," Trixie told Timmy, "He's stalling for time."

"Actually, I don't need to," Talbot said, "I can get what I need as early as..._now_."

On cue, Konda pressed the typically red button on top of the detonator. In one second, the stone pillar standing tall over the garden was now blown to large chunks, all of which were flying towards anyone standing in Talbot's way. Konda suffered minor scratches, while the mercenaries who were present had been crushed, not even warranting concern from their Commander. Timmy, in an act of nobility, shielded Trixie with his own body, receiving much of the blunt force.

"Timmy!" cried Trixie.

Timmy fell down, alive but jumping in and out of consciousness as Talbot, Konda, and Gildred took a look at the prize they sought. Sure enough, there it was. In place of the pillar was a large crater, with a literal beating heart, the size of a truck. The Heart was tainted black and blue, with purple veins throbbing all over. Now its heartbeat, previously just echoes in the city, were rapidly shaking the foundation of the manor.

"Now do we stall them?" asked Konda.

"No need," Talbot replied, "Gildred, all I need is the _thing _and this will soon be over."

With the wave of his wand, Gildred had given Talbot a small dagger, with ancient symbols etched into the blade. Leaping from the ledge, Talbot soared down onto the Heart, stabbing it straight in the center. The heartbeats grew faster and stronger, sending most of the walls of Tang Manor crumbling. From a distance, car alarms in the city could be heard going off from the sheer power of the Heart's vibrations. If one listened closely enough the way Talbot did, one could hear faint moaning, almost human, as the Heart began to shrink in size.

"How is he doing that?" asked Jorgen in shock, "This is unheard of."

As quickly as he had hopped down, Talbot had jumped back up, the Heart now the size of an apple. Holding it in his bare hand, with his two accomplices watching, this time, he made sure Timmy was conscious enough to see what would happen.

"You came in here with your magically-enhanced weapons to save the day," Talbot said, "But you failed. I have what I need _literally_ in the palm of my hand. And now, the Heart and I...are one and the same."

"You would be wise to put down the Heart now," Jorgen cautioned.

"And after everything I've done to get it, why would I let it go?" Talbot asked, humoring the muscular fairy.

"The Heart is too powerful for any human to wield, "Jorgen replied, "Even if your fairy half can contain it, your human half will be no more. You will lose whatever humanity is left in you!"

Talbot grinned wickedly.

"Exactly."

Talbot's teeth, normally human, grew sharp and beastly, like a wolf. And what else did he do but bite into the heart, chewing on it..._eating _it. With every instance of chewing on it, the Heart's juices trickled down his chin, small drops reaching the ground just beside his feet. In just two bites, he swallowed the Heart whole. And he just stood still, doing nothing, closing his eyes like he had nothing to worry about.

"What are you waiting for?" asked Veronica, "Shoot him!"

As Trixie pulled the surprisingly unrusty trigger of the rainbow-unicorn RPG, Konda rushed in to take the hit for his employer while Gildred prepared to cast a shield over his former godchild. As it turned out, neither of them got to do so, nor did they need to. As the rainbow unicorn flew straight at Talbot, his eyes opened, glowing bright yellow, and simply threw his fist forward, sending the rainbow unicorn into pieces all over the crater.

"He...he just killed a rainbow unicorn," Cosmo stuttered.

"I like those rainbow unicorns," Jorgen sniffed.

Talbot's clothes had shed, and now stood full form in everyone else's presence. His human skin now turned dark shades of purple, and from the sides of his head grew two horns shaped like those on a ram, but with ancient writings written on him. His former self dead to the world, the new and improved Talbot stood tall and proud against his outmatched opponents.

And in a dark, demonic voice, with his old one just a slight, quiet echo as he talked, Talbot finally spoke.

"**I'm going to enjoy this**."


	17. The Dark Horse and the Chandelier

The Heart as its own form was gone. It was now intertwined with Talbot's very being, bleeding all of its raw power through his veins. The human side of him was no more; his fairy side completely took over.

"**NOW**," Talbot declared, "**The era of man is over." **

"Incoming!"

Talbot, along with Konda and Gildred, looked to see a small but functioning car driving into the gardens. To the even greater surprise of Timmy, Trixie, and Veronica, the car in question, running mainly on acidic properties, drove right towards them. To Cosmo, Wanda, and Jorgen, the fact that it didn't seem to stop didn't faze them. But to the three human children, they began stepping back as the car screeched to a halt, just barely an inch away from the tip of Trixie's nose. Now that the dust had settled, they clearly saw A.J driving the vehicle, with Chester taking shotgun and Tad and Chad in the back, all of who were armed with their fairy weapons.

"Someone call the cavalry?" asked A.J.

"Not really," Timmy replied, "but it's a good thing you came anyway."

"Now to kick some...holy crap on a platter!" exclaimed Chester, "What is that thing?"

The four newcomers just now saw Talbot in his new and more powerful form, and their reaction was the same as Timmy and his team.

"That's what's left of Talbot," Timmy replied, "After he ate the Heart."

"He ATE it?" asked Tad in shock.

"That's just messed up," Chad said gruesomely.

"Sir," Konda said to Talbot, "If it's all th' same to you, we should just kill these brats now!"

"**Actually, I'm giving _you_ the honors**," Talbot replied, "**I**,** on the other hand, must attend to other matters in the city**."

Talbot rose up from the ground, floating in midair, with yellow streaks of light following him where he went.

"**Today, I will reduce the city and everyone in it to dust,**" Talbot said, "**Tomorrow...the entire human world will follow."**

Before any of the kids could do anything to stop him, Talbot had flown off into the city. And before any of them could state the obvious task of stopping Talbot, Konda had pulled out his gun, pointing it straight at Trixie.

"This has been a long time comin'," Konda said coldly.

Before his bony finger could pull the trigger, something, or someone, had shot the gun out from his hand.

"What the...? Where did that come from?" asked Veronica.

Everyone looked at the direction of the sound. From one of the few windows that remained intact after the earthquake. Jeffrey Tang held a rifle in his hands, aiming it straight at Konda.

"I'm the one you want, Konda! Not her!" he shouted, "You want to settle this? Come in here and face me like a man."

Konda smirked.

"On second thought," Konda said, "One dead Tang is as good as another."

Completely putting Trixie aside, Konda rushed back to what was left of the mansion to take down Jeffrey.

"So...is that it?" asked A.J, "We just go after Talbot while Mr. Tang does his thing?"

"And just leave my dad to fend for himself?" asked Trixie, "He'll die if we don't do something! And I didn't come all this way to rescue him just to let him get himself killed!"

"If you kids are done bickering among yourselves," Gildred said, "You may care to notice the reinforcements we've brought to take you down for good!"

Looking around them, the kids saw that there were still heavy numbers fighting for Talbot. But not mercenaries. The Bagmen were back, and they were completely surrounding the perimeter.

"Well, we're boned," Chester moaned.

"Not yet, we're not," Timmy smirked.

* * *

><p>Inside the ruined manor, Konda stepped over pieces of rubble that once consisted of the kitchen and dining hall, not bothering to wipe off the dirt from his shoes. He would do that once Jeffrey was dead.<p>

Just a flight of stairs above, Jeffrey loaded his rifle with more ammo, looking back on one of the few things Trixie never knew her father had...a collection of firearms, some antique collectibles, others fully functional, such as the one he was currently using.

"I didn't get top honors in the Gentlemen's Firearms Association for nothing," Jeffrey said to himself, "Time to put it back to use."

He stepped out from the corridor, careful to keep his weapon in front of him at all times. Despite his old age, he could still hold it quite well. But he definitely didn't have Konda's agility, and that could hold him back.

He saw a shadow move by, which he thought was Konda, and turned in that direction. That cost him his stability, as he slipped from the pile of rubble and down to the ground floor.

"Gotcha now," he heard Konda say from around the corner.

Jeffrey quickly got to his feet and ran away from the pile, Konda following shortly behind.

* * *

><p>"Cosmo, Wanda!" Timmy said, "I wish there was a way for me to reach the city fast!"<p>

Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof flashed their wands and right in front of their godchild came what looked like just a giant, golden star. Until Timmy jumped on it, at which point he felt his body attaching itself to the star, which was good when it suddenly rose up into the air.

"As long as you don't take any heavy blows, you'll be able to fly quickly into Dimmsdale and catch up to Talbot!" Wanda exclaimed.

"Or take it for a joyride!" Cosmo exclaimed.

Wanda glared at him as usual.

"Right," Cosmo said, "Right after we take out the hacky-sacks."

"And how are we supposed to do that?" asked Veronica.

"Just shoot at them!" Timmy exclaimed, "But make sure you don't look at them! The nightmares will literally kill you!"

All the other kids circled around each other, ready to take an individual angle of the Bagmen closing in. Trixie, however, hopped right on the star-pod with Timmy.

"I'm going with you," Trixie said.

"Are...are you sure?" asked Timmy, "In case you haven't noticed, Talbot isn't playing nice anymore. He's playing for keeps."

"Which is _why_ you shouldn't be going after him alone," Trixie argued, "Besides, he's done more damage to me than to any of us. I need to be there when you face him."

Timmy realized there wouldn't be any talking her out of this. Not to mention she was right. She was traumatized more than anybody during this whole ordeal. He gave in and started flying the star-pod towards the city.

"You know, the old you would have let me come along right away," Trixie said, somewhat lightening the mood.

"The old me cared more about your looks than your well-being," Timmy added.

Without warning, Trixie embraced Timmy from behind, holding on tightly. And not because they were flying on a very small platform.

"If we lose, and Talbot destroys everything, I just want to say...thank you. Thank you for everything. For coming back when you did...for not giving up on me...on us."

Timmy looked ahead at the city. The night lights of the tall buildings and street lights cast a very deceiving illusion of ignorant bliss. The screams and agonizing cries he started to hear from the streets were a far more accurate picture of what they were heading into. He knew what was ahead, and he was glad he wasn't alone.

"Anytime."

* * *

><p>A.J, Chester, Tad, Chad, Veronica, and Jorgen were all firing at the Bagmen in different directions. Though they were good enough shots to pierce their bags, the fact that they had to quickly look away until the nightmares disintegrated into the sky gave the Bagmen time to reassemble and get even closer to the group.<p>

"I never signed up for this!" Tad shouted.

"None of us did!" Chad shouted back, "But I don't want to die!"

As two Bagmen were about to close in and grab A.J and Chester, a rusty, beat-up van had crashed into the two of them, sending them backwards into their comrades, sending more of them flying backwards, the chain reaction mimicking that of a bowling ball hitting bowling pins. When the car crashed into a large chunk of rock that had crashed into the ground earlier, Crocker stepped out with an entire stash of fairy weapons.

"I knew these would come in handy one day!" Crocker exclaimed.

"I was wondering where that crack pot went," Veronica said.

"You've...had these all this time?" asked A.J.

"Well how else did you expect me to prove the existence of...FAIRY. GOD. PARENTS!" Crocker exclaimed.

"Well how about using them for something practical like getting these guys off our backs!" Chester shouted.

"Way ahead of you!" Crocker declared.

Crocker's weapons had twice the firing power of the other weapons, and since he naturally twitched and jerked every time he thought about fairy godparents, it was easy for him not to look at their nightmarish forms. At this point, Crocker had the Bagmen under control, if not briefly halted.

The problem now was with Gildred. Jorgen had not even had a chance to charge in before Gildred cast a circle around them, sending that piece of land flying into the air, high above the Manor Gardens. Unfortunately for Jorgen, Veronica had also been on that spit of land, and as useful as her weapon was against mercenaries and Bagmen, it was useless against a fairy like Gildred.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Jorgen asked, "You brought the blonde girl along as an extra head for me to watch out for."

"Correctamundo, Gigantor!" Gildred exclaimed playfully, "Now, you're going to have to decide whether to use your magic to protect the girl...or to stop _me_."

* * *

><p>Jeffrey had fired two rounds in Konda's general direction without actually seeing him, then crept back into the hallway when he heard gunshots being fired back. One of them had pierced the awning and sent a splinter flying just past Jeffrey's face, dangerously close to slicing his skin. The other scraped the tip of his rifle, chipping part of the antique material.<p>

Jeffrey backed up into the massive front room, which ironically was one of the few rooms left completely intact. Even more amazing was that the chandelier hanging from the ceiling, the one made completely from glass, had still been there.

Jeffrey had little time to admire the beauty of his front room, for Konda had appeared and shot him in the leg. Jeffrey crawled, with rifle in hand, towards the lit fireplace. Why it had been lit, he wouldn't know, but it was the only thing casting light into the room.

"I thought when I finally got you squirmin' pathetically within an inch of yer life, I would be more satisfied," Konda said, looking down on Jeffrey, "Hopefully, once I'm done with you, Trixie will put up a better fight before I end her."

The threat of Konda harming his daughter was the push Jeffrey needed for one last shot...literally, he was down to his last bullet, as chiche as could be. He was smart enough to know Konda could easily escape the rifle shot before it could reach him, and then he would be completely at Konda's mercy. He rolled over to lean back on the stone archway of the fireplace, aiming upwards, and fired.

Konda did not budge. He didn't need to. The bullet didn't hit him, of course, but nor was it aimed at him. It was aimed higher.

"That's it?" asked Konda, looking genuinely disappointed, "That's how you wanna go out? A little anticlimactic, eh?"

"Depends," Jeffrey said, looking straight at him, "How anticlimactic would you consider being crushed by 300 pounds of glass?"

If the ceiling were covering one floor instead of two, everything would have happened a lot faster. But since the glass chandelier had been much higher up, almost reaching the top of the stairway, it had a longer fall. Jeffrey wasn't aiming for Konda. He aimed for the chandelier, specifically the metal hinge holding it up. That was enough to send the chandelier coming straight down. Konda only had less than a second to look up and realize he had been had.

"Oh, son of a..."

Konda had subsequently been crushed by the chandelier, which proceeded to smash into tiny shards, most of which went flying on the floor around him. If the sheer weight of the chandelier crushing him didn't kill him, the glass shards ripping into his body definitely did. Jeffrey breathed a sigh of relief as he leant his head back.

"Best shot in the class," Jeffrey said to no one in particular, "I still got it."

As he finally relaxed knowing his former-bodyguard-turned-evil-mercenary was dead, Jeffrey simply relaxed as he saw colorful lights coming down from the heavens, clouded by dark storm clouds...not realizing it was the Fairy Council descending down from Fairy World to awaken the one thing that could truly destroy Talbot and the Heart.

The Mouth that Sings.


	18. Gildred Rising

Although Dimmsdale had been under close watch through the eyes of Bagmen, the city had still managed to maintain a peaceful, if not eerie, aura in its streets. At 11:16 pm on the day Talbot Tang ate the Heart and fused with its remnants, the city still kept that aura. The very next minute, 11:17 pm, that aura was shattered. Talbot's monstrous new form had flown through one of the tallest buildings in the city. The collapsing building shattered into boulders, crumbling down and flying in the surrounding area. The townspeople just barely had time to eacape being crushed by the debris.

"**The time has come to smite this world!**" Talbot boasted, "**A new era has begun. And it has no place for mortals or fairies!**"

Talbot merely extended his arm, and another small building, the local pharmacy had a yellow barrier cast around its edges, being levitated into the air. Large chunks of mud and dirt from underneath the pharmacy fell to the charred streets below. The pharmacy was thrown towards an area where most of the crowd had gathered. Screams of terror rang out as those in the crowd ran for their lives. The brick walls of the pharmacy had just been inches away from them when it was suddenly blasted back towards Talbot, who dodged it easily. The pharmacy fell into the water and sank to its depths as Talbot had looked in the direction where the pharmacy had been bounced back.

"**You two...**"

Trixe Tang and Timmy Turner were riding on a giant star like a surfboard, flying right in Talbot's direction. Trixie still had her rainbow-unicorn-shooting RPG, and the horn of the one she shot had been the blunt force that knocked the pharmacy into the water. The only catch was that once it reached a certain distance, it would dissolve into the air. Such was the downside of a weapon with such power, which also necessitated the importance of Timmy flying the star close enough for Trixie to have a good shot.

"It's now or never, Trixie," Timmy said, "You sure you're ready?"

"Trust me, Timmy," Trixie replied, "I'm more than ready to take this monster down."

"**Believe me, you haven't seen the monster yet,**" Talbot declared.

After taking a large breath, Talbot released a loud roar, the ripples of which sent the star flying backwards.

"Jeez, how are we supposed to get close enough to him?" asked Trixie.

"We may not have to," Timmy replied, pointing towards the glowing figure charging towards them, "I think _he's_ coming to _us_."

* * *

><p>"Doh-see-doh and around you GO!" Gildred exclaimed.<p>

The whirlwind Gildred had cast sent Jorgen and Veronica flying away from each other. All to make Jorgen struggle to get back to Veronica and protect her while Gildred mercilessly attacks him. His large muscles found themselves cut and bruised, and while he still held his own against Gildred, he was still being worn down.

"H-How...how can you possess such raw power?" asked Jorgen.

"Centuries of practice and culminating dark arts," Gildred replied, "It's a very simple formula if you think about it. Not that you'll be able to once this is all over."

"Hey, Big Fairy Guy, I think..." Veronica started to say.

"Not now, little blonde human," Jorgen said, "I must finish this before Talbot can do any more damage!"

"And what about me, gigantor?" asked an incredulous Gildred, "I'm not a big enough threat? Who do you think molded Talbot into what he is? Where else would he have learned everything he knows about magic? Besides, you're looking like you've seen better fights!"

"He is right about that," Jorgen said to Veronica, "Despite his impish size, he is growing too strong for me. That is why I must finish it now!"

"Right," Veronica said, "But if you would just listen for a..."

"Get back!" Jorgen screamed.

Jorgen pushed her away from a dark energy blast that he himself could not dodge. Jorgen collapsed to the ground as Gildred flew over him, gleefully flying over a defeated Jorgen.

"Do my eyes deceive me?" Gildred asked mockingly, "Has the big bad leader of the fairies fallen to his knees? Mmmm, no, more like you fell flat on your belly like a fish! Aha!"

Jorgen groaned in pain, not even his prized muscles were able to hold themselves up.

"Let this mark the beginning of a dark and glorious era, where the mighty Jorgen falls before-"

Gildred was cut off by a sharp pain in his hand, bad enough to send his wand flying. But the only thing that could even remotely hurt him was...

"I've, like, always known about Trixie's secret fascination with video games," Veronica said, pointing her weapon at Gildred, "Guess I wasn't totally wasting my time with those 'Battlefield' games she always wanted me to play with her."

"Impossible!" Gildred cried, "I'm a dark fairy centuries old! You're a tiny human! How are you doing that?"

"I...am curious as well," Jorgen said between grunts, "Normally only fairies can damage other fairies."

"I dunno," replied Veronica, "I just did this, and..."

As she spoke, her uncharacteristically non-manicured finger pulled the trigger once again, this time landing squarely in his chest. Like all the other fairy weapons that Timmy wished up, they couldn't actually shoot to kill since that was against Da Rules. But that didn't mean it didn't hurt a LOT. Gildred found himself out of breath, having all the air blown out of him with that one hit. And that one hit became several more hits, with Veronica continually shooting at him, doing more damage than Jorgen ever could. She was right; all that time she spent playing Battlefield seemed to be paying off, and just at the right time. Gildred, despite being out of breath, flew up for one final push.

"Why, you cocky little..."

Gildred really couldn't move this time. But it had nothing to do with Veronica. She, Gildred, and Jorgen looked up to see the Fairy Council keeping Gildred back with their magic while simultaneously lowering the spit of land they were on back down to the ground, in the spacious backyard of Tang Manor where it belonged.

"That is quite enough, Gildred," said the pink one.

"The Fairy Council!" Jorgen exclaimed, "You actually descended to the human realm?"

"Yes," the blue one replied, "Now that Talbot has fused with the Heart, the very fabric of our existence has been thrown out of balance. The damage goes beyond the truth of our existence."

"Our ultimate demise will await us unless Talbot is stopped," the purple one proclaimed, "But the humans' efforts alone will not be enough. If they are to stand a chance of defeating him, he will first need to be weakened with the Mouth that Sings."

"That," the pink one said, "is why we have come for you."

"GIGANTOR is the Mouth that Sings?" Gildred cackled, still frozen in place, "What's he gonna do? Make Talbot drop and give him twenty?"

"Not him," the pink one said, changing direction, "_Her_."

* * *

><p>Timmy and Trixie barely had time to fly down to avoid Talbot's powerful punch. The blunt force sent the small mountain crumbling down, forcing Timmy to navigate their way through the falling rubble while Talbot chased them down. With Timmy controlling the direction of thr star, Trixie was providing heavy fire in the form of rainbow unicorns, all of which were either killed by Talbot or missed the target and eventually dissolved.<p>

Once Timmy had gotten out of the shower of rubble, he turned the star around to give Trixie a more clear shot of Talbot. He didn't need to say anything. Trixie knew what she needed to do. She aimed the RPG at the shower of rubble, waiting for a clear shot of Talbot and shooting him down.

But he never did. The rubble had settled, and what had once been a mountain range had been reduced to a valley of rocks and pillars. Nothing could be underneath and still be alive. And yet Talbot had not come out.

"Did he..die under that?" asked Trixie.

"Impossible," Timmy replied, "Talbot fused with the Heart. Nothing like that could kill him."

"Then where did he go?"

"I don't know! Maybe he's still under there."

"But that's impossible!"

"**I agree.**"

Timmy and Trixie barely had time to look up. Right when they did, Talbot came flying down, slamming himself into the star. It split in half, sending both children spiraling down into the valley. As soon as he heard the sound of crashing, Talbot descended down.

* * *

><p>After the blinding bright light dissipated, all of the kids and Crocker had looked up to see there were no more Bagmen. No more mercenaries, either. Just Jorgen and Veronica being accompanied by large, hooded figures, with Gildred still frozen in place. But something seemed different about Veronica.<p>

"Hey, Veronica," Tad said, "Not that we forgot you saved our butts or anything, but..."

"...why are you glowing?" Chad finished for him.

"Because she is the host for the Mouth That Sings," the pink elder said.

"The WHAT?" everyone else cried out.

"Long story short," Veronica said, "I'm, like, the one that can put an end to all this madness."

"Not exactly," the blue elder cried out, "At this stage, the Mouth that Sings only weakens the Heart. It does not completely stop it, nor does it have any effect on Talbot. It will take more to completely destroy him."

"Namely, Timmy and Trixie," Jorgen said.

"So...how do we reach them in time?" asked A.J.

"A little...magic," Jorgen said, flashing his wand.

In an instant, the grounds had been empty, with everyone on their way to end the chaos once and for all.

* * *

><p><strong>Originally, this was supposed to be the last chapter, but it ended up being longer than I thought, so I've split them into two. The next chapter will be the final one.<strong>


	19. Deal with the Devil

Trixie's vision had gone blurry after landing in the valley of rubble. The orange-grey fog surrounding them messed with her sense of direction, but she still saw the shadow of her rainbow-unicorn-launching RPG just by her. Using one final ounce of strength, she started crawling towards it, her legs too weak to keep her standing.

But just as her weapon was within the reach of her fingers, Talbot had appeared, using his foot to stomp on the RPG, splitting it in half and rendering it useless. Trixie, in vain, stretched her hand towards it to try and grab it. Talbot almost humored her until he heard more groaning from behind.

Timmy coughed up blood as he started getting back on his feet. He was in slightly better shape than Trixie was. Both of their clothes had ripped, but at least Timmy didn't have visible cuts on his face the way Trixie did. His weapon, however, was still in one piece, and could probably shoot Talbot down.

It could, of course, if Talbot hadn't had the hindsight to freeze Timmy in place. Yellow lights outlined Timmy's body as it was levitated into the air. Whatever magic Talbot was using, it was blocking any way for Timmy to breathe. But he didn't squirm around gasping for air. He stayed frozen in place as the life was literally sucked out of him.

"No...Timmy..." Trixie faintly whispered.

Talbot clenched his fist, sending Timmy's upper body bending down towards the ground, his eyes wide open and their blood vessels reaching inward.

"Please..." Trixie begged, "Don't hurt him..."

Now she could hear Timmy trying to gasp for air as sweat trickled down his face, his cheeks growing a dark shade of purple. Somehow, Cosmo and Wanda found themselves unable to pop up t help due to the raw power behind Talbot's magic.

"**I said it before, Trixie**," Talbot growled, "**Before I finish you, I will wipe out all you hold dear. Timmy, your father, your miserable friends...they will ALL DIE**."

"I'll...I'll do anything, please!" Trixie begged, finally finding her voice.

Talbot had only been a second away from completely ending Timmy's life had it not been for a sudden, boisterous blast of force that sent him flying back into a wall of rubble. As he looked up, he was met with the same surprise as Trixie and Timmy, who was now free of Talbot's grasp and desperately gasping for air. Left to right on the valley ledge, Tad, Chad, Jeffrey (using a wooden fence post as a crutch), Veronica, A.J, Chester, and Jorgen all stood. Cosmo and Wanda were finally able to pop up, along with Poof, once Timmy was free of Talbot's stranglehold.

"It's over, Talbot," Jorgen said, "Crocker has already met with the others outside the city."

He was referring to Mr. and Mrs. Turner, as well as Tootie and Missy, who had been sent out of town earlier that night.

"Now the barrier you tricked Timmy Turner into placing around Dimmsdale has been brought down," Jorgen continued, "And your partner Gildred is already being escorted by the Fairy Council to prison."

"AND Konda's dead," Jeffrey said, "I saw to that one myself."

"Oh good," Tad said, "He was a dick even before this all started."

"Total buzzkill," Chad added.

"Oh yeah, him too," Jorgen said, "Long story short..."

Everyone except Timmy and Trixie pointed their weapons at Talbot.

"..your reign of terror ends now!"

"**I wouldn't be too sure**."

With only a glance and a change of color in his eyes (purple to red), a raspberry sound was heard, rendering all their weapons limp and useless."

"Gah!" cried Cosmo, "Not again!"

"This is exactly what happened in the forest before we met Tal-"

Wanda stopped herself once she came to the chilling realization that Talbot was there when Timmy tried to make the wish to undo everything. It made more sense now that they knew he was half-fairy. Did that mean it could have been stopped if Talbot wasn't using his magic against them?

"Then we must use our last resort," Jorgen muttered, "Veronica...the Mouth."

Talbot would have scoffed at Veronica if the Heart wasn't so fearful of the Mouth. Neither Talbot nor the Heart were about to go down so quickly. Like the old Talbot, he smiled and glanced over at his enemies.

"**I'd advise against that if I were you,**" he said.

"And after everything you've done, why would we even consider not doing it?" asked Trixie angrily, finally standing on her own two feet.

Talbot stood proud and tall as from the palm of his hand, he opened a dark, hellish vortex to the right of him. A female silhouette stood inside.

"**Once I fused with the Heart, I gained control over life and death,**" Talbot explained, "**And since I was already half-fairy, I was able to capture this woman's soul before she could cross over.**"

Everyone, especially Trixie and Jeffrey, had been nothing short of shocked as the silhouette became more clear, looking more and more like a human woman.

"**I held onto her in the hopes I could use her as a bargaining chip if I was ever disadvantaged,**" Talbot continued, "**Looks like I was right. But I never thought it would be _after_ I fused with the Heart**."

Standing in the vortex was none other than Beatrix Tang. There was no bullet hole in her head, but she still looked lifeless as she opened her eyes in what was perhaps the very first time since her death. Nonetheless, she managed to smile faintly at both her daughter and husband.

"Trixie...Jeffrey..."

Tears formed in both their eyes upon hearing her voice. It was hoarse, but it was hers. Immediately, Jeffrey put his arm in front of Veronica, knowing fully well this was a chance to get his wife back.

"**On the condition that you stay out of my way and not interfere as I destroy the Fairy World,**" Talbot proclaimed, "**Your mother Beatrix will be returned to you, alive and unharmed, as if none of this ever happened. I'll even spare the human world as a bonus.**"

"Trixie, please."

Everyone but Jorgen had seriously pondered that option. The deal almost seemed too good to be true. Especially considering Talbot had more than enough power to destroy all the worlds if he wanted.

"You can't seriously be considering this!" Jorgen boomed.

Even Wanda and Cosmo seemed to think about it, taking pity on the Tangs.

"...okay, if you keep your word," Trixie said, "We'll stand down."

Jorgen groaned as Trixie stepped closer to Talbot. Veronica could have easily weakened Talbot enough if she used the Mouth. But above her apparent role as host for the Mouth that Sings, she was Trixie's friend. She saw up close what her mother's death did to her, so if letting Talbot get away meant Trixie getting her mom back, Veronica was willing to do so.

"Thank you, Trixie," Beatrix said.

"Don't worry, Mom," Trixie said, slowly stepping closer, "This will all be over soon."

"**I concur,**" Talbot said.

"Trixie...Trixie...don't...DON'T DO IT!"

"W-What?"

"**Shut your damn mouth!**"

"He's lying!" Beatrix cried, "He's lied from the beginning!"

Talbot clenched his fist, causing burn marks to form on her face. She screamed in agony as they moved onto the rest of her body.

"Mom!"

"He's not letting me live and he's not sparing anyone!"

"**Quiet, you insufferable woman!**"

Now he had fire burn up from inside her. Literal fire. The bone-chilling screams sent down everyone's spines did no justice for the actual, excruciating pain she was suffering.

"N-No one is safe from him! No world will be spared from his wrath! Forget about what happens to me! Just stop him!"

"B-But Mom..."

"Stop him!"

Talbot's torture of Beatrix was the catalyst needed to convince Trixie to heed her mother's words. She turned to Veronica and gave her best friend the signal.

"Veronica...do it."

Just by opening her mouth, bright lights shot at Talbot, releasing his grip on Beatrix. The Heart was angrily crying out in agony at the Mouth's power. Though it could not be seen from the outside, inside Talbot's body, the Heart was shriveling up, bleeding out dark globs that weakened Talbot.

"**I-Impossible!**" cried Talbot, "**This cannot be!**"

Trixie helped Timmy up and together, both held on to his weapon, which was still intact. The barrel had been facing at Talbot's now-de powered form, awaiting a final blow.

"Ready to finish this?" asked Trixie.

"I'm so ready," Timmy replied.

"One! Two! Three!" they both quickly counted.

On three, they began rapidly firing at Talbot while the Mouth continued to depower him. Talbot kept stepping backwards into one of the piles of rubble, trying in vain to fight back. Every blow just kept him down, and he could feel the Heart disappearing from him. Once they stopped firing, the Heart, now a dark gas form, emitted itself out of Talbot's body, leaving just a yellow, glowing shell of him behind. The shell began floating up in the air, following the trail the Heart's remains left behind. Once it was high enough, the head finally looked down at the victors, and stretched his arm out, trying desperately to claw his way back.

"**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**!"

That was all it could cry out before exploding, sending small sparkles raining down to the ground, only to disintegrate before they could touch the earth.

"I can't believe it," A.J said, "It's over. It's finally over."

"I never thought it would end!" Chester exclaimed.

"Did you SEE the way he exploded like that?" Tad exclaimed excitedly.

"That was WAY too cool," Chad said in awe.

"I agree," Timmy said from down below, "A fitting end for a monster like Talbot."

Trixie did not join in on the cheers of victory, nor did her father. He meekly limped over to her as she finally got a chance to talk to her mom.

"We did it, Mom," Trixie said, "It's over. Talbot is no more."

"I'm proud of you, my daughter," Beatrix said, "You saved more than just your home and your friends. You saved many worlds from destruction. Now I can finally rest in peace."

"W-Wait!" Trixie cried, tears forming at the corners of her eyes, "You can't go! You don't need to! Talbot's not in control of you anymore! You're free!"

"That I am," Beatrix said, "I am free to move on to a better life."

"But what about MY life?" cried Trixie, "How is it supposed to be better without you?"

"Trixie," Beatrix said, touching her daughter's shoulder, "What Talbot did was merely hold me here from the afterlife. But I still died when Konda shot me. So now I can be free."

Jeffrey had put his hand on Trixie's other shoulder, partially to hold himself up, but also to support her.

"I understand," Jeffrey said, "But I will always love you, even after you're gone."

"Don't let that stop you from finding someone who makes you happy," Beatrix told him, "You deserve that much after all that's happened."

"Mom, please don't go!" Trixie was now completely sobbing, tears dripping down her cheeks, "I don't care if our home is destroyed! I don't care if we're not rich! I just want you to stay! Please!"

All Beatrix could do was kneel down and hug her daughter. And fortunately, Trixie was able to hug her back for a time. It was the tightest hug she had ever given anybody, but she could feel it loosening a little too late as Beatrix starts to fade away.

"We'll meet again, someday," Beatrix said, "Until then, enjoy your life. You have a lot of support from these fine people...I trust they will care for you the way I did. Goodbye..."

Beatrix slowly faded away completely, moving on to the afterlife. Trixie fell to her knees sobbing uncontrollably, with both Jeffrey and Timmy rubbing her back as she mourned for her mother one last time.

* * *

><p>Trixie finally woke up once the sun had risen. Everyone had camped out in Tang Manor's library, one of the only rooms left intact after the battle, despite the fallen and broken bookshelves, and books lying on the ground. Everyone else had gotten up earlier to help reconstruction efforts, both citywide and at Tang Manor. Though now that the barrier around Dimmsdale had been taken down, relief efforts came much quicker from outside sources. When Trixie had completely gotten out of her morning daze, she realized Jorgen von Strangle was the only other person with her right now.<p>

He had been sitting on one of the toppled bookshelves, yet he still towered over Trixie.

"I was wondering when you would wake up," Jorgen said, "Then again, you suffered the most all of us. You were bound to be exhausted."

Jorgen snapped his fingers and a hand towel into Trixie's hands.

"Wipe your face," he said, "You were drooling."

Touching her face, she realized he was serious. After gagging and recoiling in disgust, she wiped her face clean.

"Anyway," Trixie said, "What happens from here? With Talbot and Konda gone, and Gildred locked away, what happens to us?"

"We rebuild," Jorgen said, "With the barrier down, help can come from the outside. Fairies could easily fix the damage done, but that would give away our nature."

And then Trixie had remembered what Jorgen said about wiping everyone's memories of knowledge about magic.

"What about wiping everyone's memories about magic?" Trixie asked.

"It has already been done," Jorgen replied.

Trixie hung her head down fearing the worst.

"Then things really are the way they started?" she asked, "Back to class warfare? To having everyone divided by wealth and popularity?"

"Not necessarily," replied Jorgen, "Timmy Turner founnd a loophole. Basically, he proposed replacing their memories of magic with objects of more human nature. As far as they know, the Heart with Wings and Mouth that Sings were nuclear weapons used against each other. Talbot and his inner circle, namely Gildred and Konda, were radical revolutionaries. And the Bagmen were a covert special ops unit employed by Gemini Labs. Of course, we know the real truth of their magical natures, but Timmy's wish allowed everyone to learn the timeless lesson of teamwork and friendship, yet still keep them unaware of the world of magic."

Trixie sighed in relief.

"Then we can all still be friends," she said, "We won't have to go back to that stupid system again! I knew Timmy was smart...no matter how many F's Crocker gives him."

And then she realized something.

"Wait!" she exclaimed, "If you already wiped everyone's memories...why do I still remember how it really happened? Why do I still know about magic?"

"That is where things get interesting," Jorgen replied, "After last night's battle, the Mouth left Veronica's body. I'm not sure how or why she was chosen as the current host, but the Fairy Council believes that if it returns, you will be the next host."

"Me?"

"But that probably won't for a long time, and as long as the Heart stays in its weakened state, you will not need it."

Jorgen looked out the broken window, seeing someone coming to see Trixie. Someone who, in the records, helped Trixie hide for a while, but did not take part in reclaiming Dimmsdale. Hence, it was Jorgen's cue to leave.

"You have a visitor," Jorgen said, "Which means I will be seeing you another time."

Jorgen instantly disappeared as a familar face came out from the morning light. Someone, for instance, with green spiky hair that had been part of VIGILANCE.

"Z!" Trixie exclaimed joyfully.

The green-haired punk had instantly returned the hug Trixie gave him. Though she was careful about how roughly she grabbed him due to his injuries, he had, in truth, completely recovered from when the Bagmen assaulted him.

"Looks like you made it out just fine," he said, "How are you feeling?"

"Physically, much better," Trixie replied, "But it's still going to take time for me to completely move on from my mom's death."

"Did you at least get the son of a bitch who did it to her?" asked Z, "That bounty hunter working for your uncle?"

"They were both just pawns for my cousin," Trixie replied, mentally gagging at calling him her cousin, "But yes, we got them. For good."

"Talbot was the one behind all this?" asked Z, brushing his hand through his hair, "Damn, that's twisted. But at least it's over...for you, anyway."

"What does that mean?" asked Trixie.

"Some very important evidence against Gemini Labs was stolen," Z replied, "And we think the sneaky thief who pulled it off is planning something big. If Gemini's track record is any indication, they're targeting yet another wealthy family."

Trixie got chills thinking what could happen. Especially knowing what her own family just went through. She was not about to let someone else go through that.

"I want to help," Trixie said, "Who's family is it? Angelica? Sam? Pacifica?

"The Pickles and Mansons have already had their share of woes with Gemini Labs," Z replied, "As for the Northwests...well, Pacifica's dad might be a douche, but ironically enough, he was one of the few smart enough to not do business with Kaspar Corr, so they're all safe. We actually traced some of their heavier activities to a city called Hillwood. And one of their more prominent movers and shakers is..."

"The Lloyds," Trixie said in sudden realization, "Rhonda!"

"We already have someone on her way there," replied Z, "But it never hurts to have some extra help. Any suggestions?"

Trixie pondered and got an idea.

"I think I know a guy..."

* * *

><p>"Presenting...co-presidents Trixie Tang and Veronica Star!"<p>

Tad and Chad stepped aside for the aforementioned new co-presidents to walk out from the school as everyone stared in awe. And this time, it was because they actually liked their leaders, not out of a slave-like obligation. Veronica certainly enjoyed the attention, especially since, despite her genuine friendship with Trixie, she ws now viewed by others as Trixie's equal rather than her sidekick. Trixie, however, pulled herself out of line to talk to Timmy, who of course, as her new and very public boyfriend, was front row in watching them pass.

"I need you to make a wish," Trixie said, "Someone else is about to be targeted by Gemini Labs, and even though they were pawns for Talbot, they're still dangerous. I'm not going to let anyone else suffer like we did."

"I already like selfless Trixie better," Timmy joked, "What do you wish for?"

"...I wish for Hillwood to have a saviour. Someone to help them fight the coming threat. And most importantly...I wish for someone to protect my friend Rhonda."

"You guys get all that?" Timmy asked his pink and green shirt buttons.

"Way ahead of you, sport!" Wanda exclaimed.

"I think we know a guy!" Cosmo declared.

Both flashed and disappeared the minute the wish was made. Trixie did not even try to hide her kissing her new boyfriend after he did such a huge favor for her.

"So...what do we do in the meantime?" Trixie asked.

"I guess...we do what we do best," Timmy replied, "We enjoy what we have while we still have it."

* * *

><p><strong>Yep, I did throw in some outside references, such as RugratsAll Grown Up!, Danny Phantom, and Gravity Falls. And also Hey Arnold!, but while the others are just cameos, my next story does take place in Hillwood. Those of you who read The Unraveling know my OC Ashley Cliffe has a lead role. As for this savior Timmy and Trixie wished for, it's 50-50 between someone who already exists and one of my OCs, but it won't be someone randomly making an appearance just because I think they're cool. They've already made an appearance in one or both of the stories centered around Gemini.**

**Until then, au revoir!**


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